Tuesday, April 21, 2015
Kabul (BNA) There are colonies in the Capital in which many people hailing from Afghanistan have settled.
A walk down Bhogal market or parts of Lajpat Nagar in the evening shows how Afghanis have blended into the city’s culture, but still hold on to the traditions of their home country not just with the way they carry off their Salwar kameez and speak in their local tongue but huddle around large ovens that bake fresh bread. They meet and enjoy the evening as a small community living away from home often guiding fellow countrymen who have come for medical treatment how to negotiate their way around hospitals.
These settlers are not unique to the city and find mention in Rabindranath Tagore’s short story based in Bengal about the Kabuliwala — a man from Afghanistan living in Bengal and the relationship he shares with a family.
Two photojournalists Moska Najib and Nazes Afroz set out on a project in 2012 to document the lives of these ‘Kabuliwalas’ some of whom stay in Kolkata to bring alive the short story written by Tagore.
The photography project has culminated in an exhibition titled From Kabul to Kolkata: Of Belonging, Memories and Identity.
Although the photographs are shot in Kolkata and based on a story about Bengal, they strike a chord with viewers in Delhi who have visited pockets in the city and experienced the culture, perhaps over a plate of Afghani-style Pulao flavored with dry fruits, or kebabs.
The exhibition takes a look at Kabuliwalas, who were a common sight on the streets of Kolkata, as in most cities of north and central India; but are today branded by stereotypes. By illustrating the short story with photographs, the photographers have touched upon social transformations within this community over the last 100 years.
They have visited secluded and little-known settlements to document the life and culture of these people and bring out the theme of human bonding as described by Tagore.
As with any community living away from home, the photographs show how they have created a home for themselves and go about doing their business.
It deals with the concept of home and how the ‘Kabuliwalas’ are caught in a vacuum as they are strangers to the land from which they come from and outsiders to the land they live in.
The photographs show how they hang on to mementoes passed on through generations about their motherland and the way they have retained traditions that overlap with their new identities.
Some of them have never gone back to their home country but are still considered outsiders in their home city in India.
The exhibition is on at Max Mueller Bhavan on KG Marg till April 23, after which it will travel to Dhaka and finally to Kolkata. It was inaugurated at Kabul University last month.
As with any community living away from home, the photographs show how they have created a home for themselves
