Pictures tell untold stories - Tribal lensman wows Brazil

| Wednesday , May 29 , 2013 | Pictures tell untold stories - Tribal lensman wows Brazil

ACHINTYA GANGULY

Shutterbug Ashish Birulee from Jadugoda during the exhibition at Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Telegraph picture At a time when most young photographers are happy to upload feel-good images on Facebook, the lens of a tribal youth has captured gritty moments of the daily struggle of people living near Jadugoda uranium mines. Shutterbug Ashish Birulee from Jadugoda accomplished the rare feat of getting 38 photographs exhibited as part of the 3rd International Uranium Film Festival, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The exhibition, which ran at the Museum of Modern Art in Rio de Janeiro from May 16 to 26, showcased photographs portraying the harmful effects of radiation — chronic health problems and deformities — faced by people living near uranium mines in Jadugoda, East Singhbhum. Besides Ashish, the other photographer whose frames were displayed was New Delhi’s Chinkey Shukla. Ashish’s photographs shared the title of the film made by Ranchi-based national award winner Shriprakash, “Buddha weeps in Jadugoda”. Chinkey’s photographs were clubbed under the title “Jadugoda: the nuclear graveyard”. Unfortunately, 24-year-old Ashish could not go to Rio as his passport was not ready. But, talking to The Telegraph over phone from Jadugoda, he sounded happy that his photographs were showcased in the prestigious platform. “I sent 38 black-and-white photographs on the subject. They mostly focus on physical deformities caused by radiation,” he said. Ashish, who belongs to the Ho tribe, is a final-year sociology student enrolled in a distant education programme under EIILM University, Sikkim. Born and brought up in the area, the youth was exposed early in his life to the plight of people residing in and around mining areas. “I became interested in photography when I got a chance to assist Sriprakash in making a film. Later, I also assisted some Australian photographers,” Ashish, who wants to become a cinematographer and make social documentaries, said. Sriprakash, in Rio, said the photography exhibition received raves. “This is for the first time that a Jharkhand adivasi photographer’s work has been exhibited in the international arena,” Sriprakash wrote in an e-mail to The Telegraph. (courtesy - http://www.telegraphindia.com/1130529/jsp/jharkhand/story_16945697.jsp#.Ua3vsNKBkab)