Perhaps my life's biggest achievement! I am immensely proud of my street-theatre group, which is celebrating 30 years of its existence today, on 24th May 2022. 

Started as a means to keep ourselves entertained, this group went on to perform some really awareness creating plays all across India.

Naujawan-E-Hind thought us life lessons. Participating in it made us confident and somewhat better human beings. It has given us memories, memories and memories to cherish till we live.

Today, my heart is filled with gratitude towards all the friends, members, colleagues, patrons and our audiences who have supported us through these last three decades. 

நன்றி, धन्यवाद, شکریہ, Thank you!

History was one of my favourite subjects in school... reason being that the chapters were all stories. Stories intrigued me... they still do. Amongst many stories that I heard in school, the most popular were the ones of Raja Shivaji - the great Maratha warrior king. I always thought that his stories were like some crazy adventure potboiler film - full of twists and turns - heroic underdog and so on. Since then, it’s always been my wish to visit all those locations where Shivaji had created his pictures! And in that endeavour, I started visiting the great forts of Maharashtra one by one. This picture is of Shivneri - the birth place of Chattrapati Shivaji and one of the cleanest and well-kept forts.

The land with mystical powers.

Its a cold desert. Mud, stones, rock and pebbles as far as you can see. Harsh and inhospitable landscape. Yet there is something that allures me in Ladakh. I have been there twice and could go there a thousand times more...even though acclimatisation is an issue. This land has some mystical powers to attact mankind. I believe that no one should die without seeing Ladakh!

My first sight of a beautiful country.

What would you see normally when you exit an international airport? Parking lot, cafes, concrete buildings, tarmac roads.... right? :) I thought so too... but then I got out of Zagreb airport in Croatia and saw this... There is a park leading to some suburb, right outside the road, opposite the gate of Croatia's capital city airport. This country had scored full marks in my paper even before I had stepped out of the airport... just for the sheer beauty, that was my first sight of this gorgeous country.

A Journey Through Street-Theatre

My Cellphone Photography

Tasveer banata hun tasveer nahin banti
Ek khwab sa dekha hai taabeer nahin banti...
Tasveer nahin banti
I present to you few of my pictures clicked on my cellphone.
Enjoy... and thanks for visiting my blog... Bhushan

Portrait of Mom

Indu (1950-2006)

The Film Studio

What you don't see on cinema - is what makes you see it. Lights, Sets, Equipments and the Technician. This is my representation of backstage shooting moment.

The Water-girl

A tiny girl carrying vessel filled with water from the village well to her house. Inhabitants of The Bassein Fort (Vasai fort is the Sea fort in Vasai Road, which is a suburb towards north of Mumbai). It was established by the Portuguese as the headquarters of their Indian operations in 1534 and centre of their operations until 1739.

In The Alps

Rougemont, Swtizerland in the heart of Alps. Rougemont is located in the Pays d'Enhaut (high country) of the canton of Vaud.

This is the view from the platform of Rougemont railway station.

Quirky Village

City of Alberobello, Puglia Region, Italy. All houses in this town are made of stone with a conical roof and are so similar to each other that you can actually get lost... in its beauty of course!

Grain Grain Everywhere

Somewhere in Ropar district, Punjab, India. This is paddy crop spread evenly on a public road; possibly to sell it, i guess!

Smashed Visual

It happens only in India - people actually drive a vehicle with a smashed glass. Thats called optimum utility. This is a view from a public transport bus in Goregaon suburb of North Mumbai.

Very Close To Another Country

Ever been on an international border? Its quite an amazing feeling to see land being divided in two countries and how its protected. I had the privilege to visit two such posts - Wagah and Ranian in Punjab - bordering Pakistan.

Rest

The gardener, resting during the making of this park in Lonavala, must be for sure thinking about the hundreds of people who will eventually come here to take a break and rest once it’s completed.

Life In A... Metro

I cant write anything about this picture in particular... just that I feel like saluting the survival spirt of these people who are an ideal example of community living even in the worst scenarios.

Accident Witnessed From The Car

Quite a sight. Could not resist myself from taking a snap. This is on Juhu-Tara Road, Mumbai.

Lake in the hills

Marvel of nature - a lake atop a hill. This is Matheran, a hill station located about 100 km from Mumbai. Matheran literally means jungle on top.

The Pond

This pond is inside the Botanical Gardens of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. It is serene and beautiful despite being in the heart of a bustling city; appropriate place to spend some time in solitude.

Swan-song

Melbourne is famous for its erratic weather changes. It is said that you can actually experience four seasons in one calendar day while in Melbourne. Well, the miraculous colors that you can see in the water and sky is not created. That’s how it was during one of the lucky evenings, when I was there.

The Magic Hour

This enchanting confluence of the sun and the land reminded me of an astounding verse written by the legendary Pt. Pradeep “Jagat bhar ki roshni ke liye, karodon ki zindagi ke liye, suraj re jalte rehna, suraj re jalte rehna…”

Writing in the skies

This was one of the most peculiar sights I have come across. I had to hurry myself to click this one, yet I missed the last word that faded out before I could click. The writing in smoke (which actually looks like cloud) read ‘Jesus loves you’. This was made by a jet which flew over Chapel Street in Melbourne.

The 'Firang' Nat

'Nat' in Hindi means a Trapeze Artiste. I was quite impressed finding a 'Nat' doing this acrobatic performance in Melbourne. Further in the show i found out that this artiste was not only an acrobat but a good mimic and stand-up comedian too. In fact this whole show that he presented could be easily a termed as 'street-play'.

Street-play in Australia

This is a continuation of the previous picture. This 'Nat' is seen performing a magic trick here as part of his complete act which lasted for about 30 minutes.

2 of the 12 Apostles on The Great Ocean Road

The Twelve Apostles are icons of the Great Ocean Road. These giant rock stacks soar from the swirling waters of the Southern Ocean. These Apostles were formed by erosion of the original coastline. The constant action of the sea on the limestone slowly wore down the rocky cliff, gradually leaving individual rocks.

The pyramid ceiling of Melbourne Botanical Garden's Museum

Isn’t this ceiling mystical? Well it better be. It took me 20 minutes of strenuous effort trying to get the angle right; I almost sprained my neck while constantly looking upwards.

Bridge to the skies

This is Bolte Bridge in Melbourne and this particular shot was taken while we were filming inside a bus for the spectacular Chak De! India. The elevation at one point in the bridge is quite astounding, almost like a pathway to the sky.

The Land of Kangaroos Today

This is just a postcard picture trying to capture the magnificence of development.

From The Car in Melbourne

I am in a car on the other side of the highway at a speed of approx 100 kmph and so is the car in the photograph. Yet the small 1 mega pixel lens of my cell phone, without any shutter control, could capture this image.

The Bombay Auto Rickshaw

Wikipedia says that the construction and characteristics of auto rickshaws make them an extremely unsafe class of vehicle but we Bombayites have been safely using this mode of transport for years. Spirit of Mumbai!

Film Stock

Many, who see films, would hardly know how this celluloid is processed or how does the raw stock that goes into making of the finished product called cinema looks like. For starters here is a can of a sound recording film. Sound is recorded on this negative and then processed along with the picture negative to make the final print. This print which is projected in cinemas is also called as ‘married print’ in film circles.

Theatre In The Nature

This is an auditorium of a school in Village Aawas, Taluka Alibag. What a scene it is – actors performing in an open stage and public viewing them in close quarters sitting on the mud ground. No need for air conditioning, chairs, gallery, sound system, lights or cafeteria. I had the privilege of performing here with kids of my street-theatre group. It was amazing experience. This picture that you see is of my group rehearsing a play.

The Dilapidated Pier

This is the Rewas Pier, the port that leads you to Alibag via the sea route. If you are in Bombay, do try visiting this place by the sea. It is fun. This pier was made in the early nineteen century by the British and is in a dilapidated state right now There is also another pier close to it which was rebuilt few years ago that bears the weight of numerous passengers every day and double every weekend (Alibag is very popular weekends get away for Bombayites). It is surrounded by huge mangroves.

Sunset at Bombay Harbour

I am in a boat traveling from Rewas in Alibag to Bombay at around 6 in the evening. The sun is about to set. I don’t know what more to write about this picture... sunset and sunrise has been clicked by so many that it will sound cliché no matter what I write. The only thing that I would like to mention is that you can see the Bombay High (India's biggest oil drilling centre) faintly in the background.

Crow-crow

"Mori atariya pe kaaga bole, mora jiya dole, koi aa raha hai...” folk tradition in India has this maxim on seeing a crow on the balcony or window of your house.

Pictured on a terrace facade of a school in Dhobitalao, Mumbai; you can see the cityscape in the far-bottom background.

Main Aur Mera Saaya

This was one of the first images that I clicked with my new Nokia 6670. It’s at St. Xavier's School at Dhobitalao, Mumbai during one of my street-play workshops for the students. During the lunch break we were just wandering around in the school ground when I realized that the top sun was creating this really mystic impression on ground. I put myself in between the sun and ground to get this image.

Marine By The Dawn

Marine Lines at 0700 hours on Republic Day 2006. Have you ever experienced the joy of traveling in a local train on a public holiday in early hours? There could be no better happiness then finding empty seats, no hustling-bustling sounds, and peace at railway station in Bombay. It is a rare phenomenon, which I don’t miss to savor every time I get a chance. Try it once, I can bet you will find solace if you are a regular public transport user in Bombay.

The Beautiful Mistake

Even mistakes can be artistic sometimes! This is proved in this picture. I was trying to click a normal profile picture of one of my friends and something happened that I don’t know. All I know is the end result, which you can see. Won’t tell you the name of the person… that’s for you to guess!

Portrait In Grey

Black & White!!! It fascinates me. Mugdha, my colleague offered to model and I needed to learn. So I clicked this picture in my office and touched it up on the computer. The light and shade created by sunlight was ideal to make this a B & W portrait.

Shehenshah Ka Maqbara

Safdarjung's tomb in New Delhi. One thing I can assure you here is that this tomb looks better in this picture than in real. Unfortunately, drug addicts, pick-pockets, romancing couples and touts acting like guides have spoiled the charm of this otherwise magnificent place

Train at Kasara

On my way to Nasik with my freind Chintaman, we alighted at Kasara station to eat 'wadapau' thats when i saw this angle of the train. The sepia tone in this picture gives me that nostalgic feel that i always identify trains with. I love traveling in train for the simple reason that this is the only mode of transport where you can actually walk, pee and crap while traveling, needless to mention that you can also savour the beauties of nature from its window.

Disco Light

I have been experimenting with mistakes - or to put it correctly with shakes! This one is a shaky hand trying to capture the vivid colors of light illuminated by multicolored bulbs.

I guess I get quite arty results when I falter with the lens.

Abstract Art

One more of an abstract art created by me through error. I think pictures that I click through mistakes are better then the ones I click normally. What do you think?

Young Talents In Waiting

Talents waiting for their turn! At St. Xavier's School ground foyer during one of the street-theatre rehearsals. Interesting is the contrast created in the picture by the pillars; It separates the old architecture with the new… seen in background.

Meri Awaz Suno

Greats of Indian film music and playback singing. Nine gems (from L to R) Talat Mahmood, Geeta Dutt, Hemant Kumar, Mukesh, Lata Mangeshkar, Mohammed Rafi, Asha Bhosle, Kishore Kumar and Manna Dey. It’s a painting which was the backdrop of a very popular TV show Meri Awaz Suno.

Light And Shade

The aim of realist photographer is to show the light and shadow and surface tones. That’s what I was attempting at… I don’t think I even got close to what it should have been… but putting it up anyways for my colleague Nandini Arora, who pretended very hard to be at work while I was clicking it.

The Old Indian Theatre

In the bustling hub of town, adjacent to St. Xavier’s school and Crawford market, this age old cinema house Edward Theatre still exists. Built in 1860, Edward is one of the oldest single screens in Bombay. In past, before it screened films, opera was performed for the stationed British garrison officers. Later it staged Gujarati folk theatre and about 90 years ago it became a cinema. A haven for laborers and migrant workers it isn’t air conditioned though its beautiful ceiling fans and interiors are worth a second look. Once a centre of latest films, this theater somehow has still survived the advent of multiplexes; but now screens re-run films.

The Mug

My experiment with table top photography. The furnishing on my desk with sunlight coming in from the window were my helping hands.

The Marine Drive Flyover

Princess Street is a neighborhood which stretches along this road in south Bombay.

All Bombayites must sure have seen the famous marine drive flyover (remember the opening sequence in the super hit Hindi movie Dhoom where the bank van is looted and then toppled). This is the other end of that flyover which serves the busy Marine Lines railway station as well as Thakurdwar and Bhuleshwar to the north and Dhobitalao to the south. The legendary Parsi Dairy Farm can also be found here.

Twilight At Chowpatty

Chowpatty is one of the most famous public beaches adjoining Marine Drive in the Girgaum area of Mumbai, India. The beach is famous for Ganesh Chaturthi celebrations and the samadhi of Lokmanya Bal Gangadhar Tilak, who was creamated here.

Chowpatty is really Chau-pati (four channels or four creeks) as per (Bombay City Gazetteer). This name is analogous to that of Satpaty, a village in the Mahim Taluka of the Thana District, which is approached through a Channel or Creek, containing seven divisions of water.

Sun

It’s a greeting card; outcome of a great craft skill.

Picture This!

This is a fact - sabse zyaada nakhraa do log karte hain. Ek - jo achha gaate hain aur doosre - jo achhe dikhte hain. If you ever ask any singer who sings reasonably well to sing they will make bahanaas like mood nahin hai or else awaaz kharaab hai, They will never sing spontaneously. And if you ever ask a beautiful girl to picture her – this would be the result!!