Australian Film Festival at IIC – Film Review

The Tall Man

Written and Directed by Tony Krawitz, ‘The Tall Man’ is a documentary based on a book of the same name by Chloe Hooper. The documentary is a puzzle which takes the audience on a roller coaster ride to determine the truth behind the famous Cameroon Domadgee death in custody case.

An inebriated Cameroon was arrested one morning for swearing at Senior Sergeant Chris Hurley, and just an hour later he was found dead in the Palm Island police station. The police claimed that Domadgee died because he fell and slipped when entering the cell. Nobody cared to explain how he got such bad injuries by just falling: four broken ribs, a badly ruptured liver and condition as bad as after a car accident.

The documentary uses court transcripts, interviews with Doomadgee’s family and fellow residents and video footage of Hurley re-enacting his version of that day’s event. It also touches upon Palm Island’s colonial history where racism was widespread. 

The filmmaker plays fair by allotting almost the same time to Hurley’s supporters as he does to Domadgee’s. The local people of Palm Island would refer to Chris Hurley who was 6 ft 7 in. tall and weighed 115 kg as ‘The Tall Man’ (of the title) because of his giant physique. The documentary highlights the difficulty to bring him to trial, and his final acquittal makes us question the Judiciary. Krawitz couldn’t convince Chris Hurley to be in the film. The film ends with the results of the final investigation conducted in 2010, including an audio recording of Hurley’s statement.

Go Back to Where You Came From: Series 2

The documentary film shows us the lives of refugees and the difficulties they face trying to lead a normal life. The filmmaker tried a new genre of documentary film making i.e., a reality TV show format. This fresh approach makes us as an audience more interested, captivated and receptive. Refugees are vulnerable and prone to exploitation and violence. With no protection and no rights, they are completely helpless. This documentary does try and bring out the debate of asylum seekers in the open.

We were shown Episodes 2 and 3 from Season 1 of the documentary. It begins with a mini introduction of all the 6 participants – their names, ages, backgrounds and their opinion on the Australia's asylum seeker debate. Except one of the participants, all the rest shared a common hatred for refugees and this included an absolute racist (Raquel) and a complete Muslim hater (Adam). From being a part of  immigration raids in Malaysia, to living in a refugee camp in Kenya, from visiting slums in Jordan and going to war torn countries like Congo and Iraq – the participants do it all.

The film screening was followed by a discussion with filmmaker Rick McPhee. During which a woman said that the participants take more of our attention and sympathy than the refugees. Though she meant it otherwise, I felt that was the biggest advantage of the film. It worked well because, in order to win the asylum seekers debate in their favor, we need to convince people who are anti-refugees first. And the film does that easily, as it strikes a chord with especially such people and makes them think. They connect with participants who are challenged by the situations they are put in and change completely by the end of their journey. If the participants on the show could have a change of heart, so can other such people. The documentary gives us all a ray of hope.

German Expressionism and Architecture in Cinema

Introduction

The Expressionist movement began in Germany around the 1900’s. Originally the idea was for the artist to produce a piece of work entirely from a subjective point of view. Popular examples are: The Scream by Edward Munch, and Starry Night by Van Gogh.

Expressionism in architecture also began in Germany around the early 1900’s. It refers to German, Dutch, Czech, Austrian and Danish Avante Gard from 1910-30. Architecture showing original, unique design was popular.  Research from Sigmund Freud and Karl Jung helped start the Expressionist movement. There was more focus on the psychological effects of form and space when designing. Socialist government was repressing towards art, it was a way to act out for the artists/architects. 

Characteristics:

• Distortion of the form to invoke emotion
• Striving to be new and original
• Heavy use of ‘Artisan Craftsmanship’
• The idea of architecture as a work of art

Some e.g. of buildings:

• Einsteins tower - This was built by Erich Mendelsohn and is the most iconic representation of expressionism in architecture.
• Goetheanum - This can be found in Dornach, Switzerland. It is the world centre for anthroposophical movement.  Designed by Rudolph Steiner, this building is basically a perfect definition of expressionist architecture.

Cinema and Architecture

Many critics see a direct tie between cinema and architecture of the time, stating that the sets and scene artwork of Expressionist films often reveal buildings of sharp angles, great heights, and crowded environments, such as the frequently shown Tower of Babel in Fritz Lang’s Metropolis.

This film movement paralleled Expressionist painting and theater in rejecting realism. The creators of the time sought to convey inner, subjective experience through external, objective means. Their films were characterized by highly stylized sets and acting; they used a new visual style which embodied high contrast and simple editing. The films were shot in studios where they could employ deliberately exaggerated and dramatic lighting and camera angles to emphasize some particular affect - fear, horror, pain.

So I discuss two films belonging to the early Expressionist phase (1920’s and 30’s): The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari (1920), and Metropolis (1927). Films then were highly symbolic and deliberately surrealistic portrayals of filmed stories. The extreme non-realism of Expressionism was short-lived, and it faded away (along with Dadaism) after only a few years. However, the themes of Expressionism were integrated into later films of the 1920s and 1930s, resulting in an artistic control over the placement of scenery, light, and shadow to enhance the mood of a film. Therefore I discuss two recent films influenced by German Expressionism: Blade Runner (1982) and Batman Returns (1992) in my paper very briefly before I end.

 

The Cabinet of Doctor Caligari (1920)

With this movie, director Robert Wiene created a masterpiece.  Not only is the story interesting and engaging, but nearly every shot in the movie looks like an Expressionist painting.   The sets, designed by Hermann Warn along with to painters, Walter Rohrig and Walter Reinmann, are filled with strange angles, triangular doors, and crooked roofs.  Complex and intricate architecture, odd stairways, and bizarre props such as giant stools near enormously tall desks all serve to give the film a unique look. The entire production feels like the dream of a madman.

The characters too have been worked upon.  The heavy, exaggerated make-up with sharp angular lines painted across the characters faces and the triangular costumes serve to accent the sets and props.   No film has ever captured insanity so well. The lighting is very important in this film, and a key aspect to expressionist film.  The stark, harsh, shadow filled lighting gives all of the scenes a nightmarish quality.  The sets are painted with shadows which makes the movie even more eerie and otherworldly than it would have been otherwise.  In one of key and often imitated moments in the film, a murder is shown only as shadows on a wall. 

This scene demonstrates the effect created through the Expressionist technique of using angular structures to help represent a disjointed mood and a nightmarish atmosphere.

Cesare’s movements were stiff and robotic. His makeup was excessive and overdone. Some of the shadows in this scene were created by wall paintings to enhance contrast between light and dark. The “Cabinet of Dr. Caligari” employed the Expressionist technique of using dream sequences and flashbacks to twist reality and warp chronology.The unnatural and exaggerated character of Cesare carried out frightening acts during the dream sequences.

Designed by the Expressionist Bahaus School, the films’ sets were contorted and artificial. The distorted designs helped to develop the atmosphere of disorientation.

Metropolis (1927)

Fritz Lang's film Metropolis demonstrates a visually progressive 'Futurist' society dealing with relevant issues of 1920s Germany in relation to labour and society. It contains a lot of weird, futuristic elements that have stuck with science fiction ever since they first appeared in this movie, and the shots of the robot with electricity in circles around her has become quite iconic.

In keeping with Expressionist concepts, Lang portrayed women in the unnatural form of machines.

Huge sets that dwarf the actors is very well evidenced by the enormous power plant and glimpses of the massive yet pristine 'upper' city.

Lang accentuated the dark mood of the film by including lighting practices characteristic of Expressionist cinema.

Blade Runner (1982)

Many analysts believe that Expressionist media often contains an underlying and ambiguous social critique. In the science fiction movie, “Blade Runner”, directed by Ridley Scott, poetic speeches contained vague political themes and ideologies.

In the manner of Expressionism, Ridley Scott incorporated dark shadows, hazy lighting and odd camera movements into the film. In addition to the parallels to movie “Metropolis”, “Blade Runner” imitated sequences from other German Expressionist films. Bladerunner’s emphasis on the degraded, alienating city resembled that of many expressionist "street films" taken together. Some propose that “Bladerunner” was a remake of Lang's Metropolis. 

Similar to the earlier Expressionist film, “Metropolis” (above), “Bladerunner” portrayed a futuristic city as bleak and dark (below). 

Ridley Scott contrasted light and dark and used straight angles and silhouettes.

Batman Returns (1992)

Ambitious adaptations of the style are depicted throughout the contemporary filmography of director Tim Burton. His 1992 film Batman Returns is often cited as a modern attempt to capture the essence of German Expressionism. The angular building designs and severe-looking city squares of Gotham City evoke the loom and menace present in Lang’s Metropolis. The angular building designs and severe looking city squares of Gotham City bore resemblance to Lang’s futuristic city. The urban design of Gotham city resembled a dream or nightmare like landscape. A variety of architectural styles including Expressionism were borrowed from in the creation of the city.

Conclusion

I would conclude with the following quote which sums up Expressionist movement as a whole:

“The Expressionist does not see, he has visions”

-         German Expressionist writer, Kasimir Edschmid, (1919)

This holds true for expressionism everywhere, be it buildings, paintings, theatre or films. 

How ‘Fashion Blogging’ is changing the face of fashion photography (Part III)

Hanneli Mustaparta                     www.hanneli.com/

Norwegian street style titan Hanneli Mustaparta is a model-turned-photographer, blogger and stylist. It's easy to dismiss her as yet another all-singing, all-dancing, multi-tasking model, but for her eponymous blog, which American Vogue reports "sees more traffic than a SoHo sidewalk on a Saturday afternoon", each post prompting hundreds of rapturous comments.

Hanneli began modelling at seventeen, but after realising that she was "never going to be a supermodel," she turned the lens on herself. She's nonchalant about the switch: "I started out taking pictures and posting them on my blog to practise reviewing my own work. In between modelling jobs, I styled editorials, music videos, and worked as a wardrobe consultant. Then out of the blue I gained this big following, which grew and grew."

  

Some of her photographs that have been published in fashion magazines.

Now based in New York, she clearly relishes the control that comes with occupying both sides of the camera: "As a model you are there to be a piece in someone's creative puzzle. Once in a while it's okay to be part of the ideas, bouncing ideas around on set, but mostly you don't. Since I couldn't do much while at work, I would always soak in the shoot every step of the way, asking questions if I saw fit.

She considers herself to be "a photographer slash fashion blogger slash writer and contributor to Vogue.com. Lots of slashes!" Everything on her blog she shoots herself, both street style shots of worthy subjects and photographs of herself. Does she use a self-timer? "I set up the shot and then have an assistant who presses the button."

Some photographs from her blog.

For her a  perfect street style shot would be: “A sunny afternoon in New York with a thin scattering of clouds, a person that is wearing something because they really love it and not because it's a trend. An outfit that's been put together in a unique way with confidence and charm.”

In her interview with the Telegraph (March 2012) she says “I have always found photography magical, and became more taken with it whilst modelling. I got my first proper SLR camera four years ago and started shooting and learning about the different settings. I'm self-taught and emailed photographers I knew if I had questions I couldn't figure out from the manual or online. I took a brief summer class for a month three years back, only to realise the class was at beginners' level. So I didn't learn much, but had fun developing my own images in the dark room. I use a Nikon D700.”

Despite officially 'retiring' in 2008, she still does a bit of modelling on the side - Massimo Dutti have signed her up as the face of their spring/summer 2012 campaign, and she was immortalised on a series of T-shirts by Zara in 2011 - but it's her extra-curricular skills that have made her a real hit. Calvin Klein snapped her up as their social media co-ordinator over fashion week in February of this year (she manned the CK twitter account and launched their tumblr) and she presented American Vogue 's coverage of their shopping event, Fashion's Night Out, on CBS in 2010.

Conclusion

I will conclude by talking about the short 10 minute documentary “Take My Picture” by Garage Magazine which talks about how much has changed in the past 20 years in the fashion industry. With the integration of bloggers and the boom of photographers, fashion has morphed into this ever growing industry. The film examines the phenomenon from the perspectives of bloggers and street style icons as well as fashion magazine editors and other industry professionals. The Garage Magazine sat down with one of the world’s most influential fashion journalists, Tim Blanks. He says in the film: “Things are changing. Street style photography is getting more and more critical when is comes to good photographers, such as the Sartorialists or Tommy Tons.”

The Fashion industry used to be distinctly more insular than it is today, an elitism that was encouraged, a desired lifestyle laced with campness. This elitism and campness got reflected in the fashion photographs too, which has been the same for ages, until now with the fashion photo blogs finally being accepted by the mainstream even if grudgingly. The idealized image of desire, which once was the over-groomed body beautiful, now seems to be the soul searching teenager on her gap year, like the runway favourite Julia Nobis. Where before the must-have invite was for the red carpet, the most influential and photographed forum today seems to be the street or music festival. Could it be said, then, that drama has left the stage for a generation of people on the streets? Yes seems to be the answer seeing the present scenario, and I feel it’s headed the right way.

How ‘Fashion Blogging’ is changing the face of fashion photography (Part II)

Scott Schuman              http://www.thesartorialist.com

Scott Schuman in Autumn 2007. Photo by Christopher Peterson.

Scott Schuman is an American blogger and fashion photographer who created "The Sartorialist." After leaving his position as director of men's fashion at his showroom to take care of his daughter in September 2005, he began carrying a digital camera around and photographing people he saw on the street whose style he found striking. He then posted these to his blog, sometimes with short comments, always either favorable or open-minded. He is well known for photographing what have been described as 'real people.' He pioneered fashion photography in blog form.

Photographs from his blog

"The Sartorialist" quickly became a regular read for fashionistas, both on the street and in the upper echelons of the industry. Schuman began his site with the hopes of connecting fashion and everyday street life. He describes his philosophy as trying to echo how fashion designers looked at what they saw on the street: “My only strategy when I began The Sartorialist was to try and shoot style in a way that I knew most designers hunted for inspiration.”

Condé Nast tapped him to do something similar during Fashion Week in Paris for its style.com website. He has covered shows during New York's Fashion Week for Saks Fifth Avenue. Schuman has been featured in GQ Magazine where he was given his own page in every issue for nearly four years, as well as work appearing in Vogue Italia, Vogue Paris and Interview Magazine.

 An image from Schuman's Coach Campaign.

Schuman collaborated with numerous advertising campaigns: for The Gap and Verizon, with Kiehl’s on an exclusively commissioned product and campaign surrounding Father’s Day, Nespresso, DKNY Jeans, Gant, OVS, Crate & Barrel. Burberry, meanwhile, tapped Schuman to shoot the groundbreaking social media-cum-advertising “Art of the Trench” project.

About his shooting style in a Harper’s Bazaar interview, on how he chooses who to photograph he says: “No. I mean, there is that element–the [person who] totally wants to get shot, and dressed crazy. But that’s never what I shoot. It’s the people who want to be famous, shot by people who want to make their blog famous. But it’s not what I’m interested in. So the only way it affects me is I guess a more congested background when I’m shooting.”

In his interview with Vitamin Daily he says: “It took me a long time to be able to call myself a photographer. I didn’t train with anyone; I didn’t go to school for it. It took me a long time to get to the point where I could say that I have my own unique look, and people recognize my photographs.”

In 2009, an anthology of Schuman's favourite shots from around the world was published as a book entitled The Sartorialist.

 

Some pages from The Sartorialist (2009)

Schuman cites as inspiration the photography of documentary style cameramen like National Geographic’s SteveMcCurry, the man behind the now-famous June 1985 cover photo featuring an Afghani girl with haunting sea green eyes. Looking at Schuman’s photos, you can sense that he is trying to capture the inner spirit of his subjects, not only their fashion sense. “I’m not reporting on a bag; who’s carrying what bag and who’s wearing what dress. I’m not reporting on people,” he explained. “What I am looking for is a certain grace.”

But Mr. Schuman’s influence is felt far beyond the blogosphere. His beautifully framed photos, which feature fashion insiders and football fans alike, now appear on mood boards in design studios around the world. His photographic style has inspired countless advertising campaigns and editorials.

SusieLau                           www.stylebubble.co.uk/

Susanna Lau, also known as Susie Bubble, is a writer, editor and photographer living and working in London. Lau started her blog "Style Bubble" in March 2006, and since then she has enjoyed many fashion and photography adventures. Every day, Susie Lau logs on to her blog, Style Bubble, photographs her outfit, raves about a new designer and inspires her international fanbase. She's one of the first bloggers to be recognised by the industry - she was one of only two bloggers invited to a Gucci show in New York, and has since accepted tickets to Chanel and Lanvin.

“I'm self taught when it comes to photography, but at the beginning I would learn from the pro photographers and just mess around. I spent six months just auto shooting, and just built up my confidence.” she says in an interview with Cosmo magazine.

An overcast day, which is Susie’s preferred outdoor lighting, is much easier to work with, as it produces a friendlier and more diffused light - you'll see no dramatic shadows here! “And in any case, think of the poor model having to squint up at the sun while you get the correct camera settings. A screwed up face is never a good look.” she is quick to point in an interview with Marie Claire (2013). 'In terms of shooting, I have a set order of what shots I want to get in my head – a full length, a 3/4 and then catch any details close-up (shoes, bags etc.),' she says.

 

Photographs from her blog

“You want the attention to be focused on the person you’re photographing, not on the background. Scaffolding and white van don’t create the best background. It changes the entire photograph; you find your focus is drawn away from those beautiful clothes to read the background sign. If you want to express calm in a portrait, choose a calm background. Rather than shooting on a flat wall (Susie loves to get depth in a photograph) placing a model in the centre of a road, preferably a quieter one, will create an instant frame.” says Sussie in ‘How to become a fashion photographer: a masterclass with Susie Lau’ in Cosmo magazine (2013).

Style Bubble's Susie loves to photograph details. She often finds her self snapping away in restaurant or walking down the street when she sees wonderful textures all around her. These snapshots are great for inspiration on colours and themes for future shoots.

Some other photographs from her blog.

Lau was editor of Dazed Digital, the website of Dazed & Confused magazine, from 2008-2010. Lau now works full-time on her blog and other freelance projects, including writing for Elle, The Daily Rubbish and Dazed Digital.

How ‘Fashion Blogging’ is changing the face of fashion photography (Part I)

Introduction

If you Google the term ‘Fashion photography’ the definition you generally get is that it is a genre of photography devoted to displaying clothing and other fashion items. In present times there is a contradiction here: In theory, its purpose is the same as that of a catalog: to depict the clothes and help to sell them. In practice however, fashion photography has been used as a vehicle for self-expression by some of the world's greatest photographers. Over time, fashion photography has developed its own aesthetic in which the clothes and fashions are enhanced by exotic locations and story lines.

In order to discuss fashion photography, it should first be understood as a unique type of photograph, one that is simultaneously documentary and art work. In addressing fashion photography in his book The Fashion System, Roland Barthes explains that the world is a backdrop. That backdrop can be transformed into particular stages for specific theater themes. The theater of meaning in fashion then walks the line between the serious and the whimsical. Barthes describes fashion photography as an exorcism in which everything in the photo is made “outrageous” so that the garment alone seems real and convincing. Barthes identifies 3 common strategies in the fashion photograph:

1)      Literal representation: the catalog shot displaying the garment. 

2)      Romanticized: fashion becomes referential, a story where real life becomes art like in acting out dreams. 

3)    Mockery: a model in an outrageous situation using unreal juxtapositions, unlike the previous there is no romance or reason but total absurdity. 

Since its inception in the 1880s, the fashion photograph has generated criticism. Some photographers consider it too commercial, an impure application of the art form. It has sometimes been dismissed as frivolous and criticized for promoting negative stereotypes.

Latest development: Fashion Photography blogs

Fashion photography blogs are blogs that cover the fashion industry, clothing, and personal style. They cover fashion at all levels from the biggest names to the smallest indie-designers.

Fashion is a multi-billion-dollar industry that has considerable impact on the way ordinary people dress and present themselves. But there is more to fashion than the different articles of clothing, fashion is made up of designers, buyers, retailers, editors, columnists and photographers. While all parties work together to create an image, all of these parties can simultaneously be affected by outside forces, especially blogs. Fashion is trend-driven and fashion blogs provide a new way to follow and oversee these fast-paced trends, it is likely that the blogoshepere will have a considerable long-term influence on the industry, as the number of fashion based blogs continue to grow. All this will eventually (and is presently also) influencing fashion photography.

Fashion is ever so changing and so is fashion photography.

Even photographers from yesteryear like Richard Avedon brought movement to the pages of fashion magazines which were so posed and stiff before he came along and Helmut, well, Helmut brought out the kink and free spirit in everyday fashion. The new breed of street fashion photographers is just taking the momentum they created forward.

Also often, the creative desires of the photographers are at odds with the intentions of the editor, as Anna Wintour, fashion editor at Vogue, illustrates: Our needs are simple. We want a photographer to take a dress, make the girl look pretty, give us lots of images to choose from, and not give us any attitude. Photographers - if they are any good - want to create art. So, bloggers have been chipping away at the mainstream media as more and more people want to hear about fashion from people who apply it to everyday life.

The historical aspect aside, fashion photographers should love fashion! Live it, love it, and dream about it. Fashion photographers have to be aware of a lot of things; you’re photographing garments that need to grab the viewer’s attention, you need to know how to photograph them well and may even have to lend your eye in styling them to make an image. Even Paolo Roversi has occasionally styled his own editorials!  Obviously, a strong background in fashion is a must for this. It’s not something I wish on anyone, but there will always be one of those days where you need a stylist and the only person that can come through is you, so you better know how to put an outfit together! And this is one trait that a lot of mainstream fashion photographers lack presently and this is where our new breed of fashion bloggers scores over them.

“Fashion used to be very dictatorial,” said Constance White, style director of eBay and a former fashion journalist, speaking at a panel on fashion blogging hosted by glam.com last year. Getting access to the fashion tents is very difficult for outsiders. For years fashion was something written about and photographed by a small number of publications whose writers and photographers guarded their access to shows and designers as fiercely as their Chanel handbags. Many people might not have heard of Scott Schuman, Susie Bubble and Hanelli Mustaparta but they are household names to dedicated followers of fashion photography blogs. All three are big players in the blogging revolution that has turned the fashion world on its head.

Bloggers see themselves as truth tellers in a world where the truth is hard to come by. “What we offer is a personal point of view,” said Scott Schuman of The Sartorialist. “I love magazines, but they can come across as corporate.” “If you’re a junior writer at Vogue, you can’t write a scathing review of Oscar de La Renta,” said Kathryn Finney of The Budget Fashionista. “Whereas, as a blogger, I have a lot more flexibility because my boss is me.

Like consumers, the blogs come in all shapes and sizes. Schuman's Sartorialist blog photographs style as it catches his eye on the street, finding inspiration in everything from designer dresses to filthy workwear. The hierarchical fashion landscape changed beyond all recognition with the advent of digital media.

Early adopters such as Susie Lau of Style Bubble and Scott Schuman of The Sartorialist have become part of the new digital media establishment, where they face increasingly well-heeled competition from digital editions of Elle and Vogue, as well as the brands themselves. The situation was summed up by the flamboyant, meat-dress wearing Lady Gaga in her column for V Magazine: "The reality of today's media is that there are no echelons" –this applies to fashion photography perfectly today.

Sights and Sounds at Okhla Vegetable Market - Part II

Location: Okhla Vegetable Market

Time: 04:10 a.m. to 5:30 a.m.

20 sounds that I liked:

1. Namaz – coming from the tent put up for the auspicious Ramzan season.
2. The sound of stray dogs being kicked intentionally or unintentionally, in any crowded places is common.
3. ‘Aao! Aao!’ – Shopkeepers keep shouting this to lure customers.
4. ‘70 Rs. bahot ho gaya’ – the price may change but this is one dialogue you get to hear from both the customers and the shopkeepers.
5. As a vegetable market is a crowded place the commotion of people, the mixing of chatter, with the sound of walking and other activities creates a noise unique to the place.
6. ‘Hato!’ – Very commonly heard by the workers carrying big sacks or huge boxes on there backs when somebody is blocking there way.
7. A radio playing in the background is common to a lot of places, but a vegetable market is one place where in order to here it you would have to close your eyes and feel it.
8. ‘Papita!?’ – the item may change, they may know you are not there to shop, but a good vendor will never let an opportunity pass by to inquire if you need something.
9. ‘Puch ke laga cheezein’ – a shopkeeper instructing a worker under him, or a father teaching his son, this is very often heard in various forms.
10. Sound of the honking of cars from the road, and the trucks in the mandi are a constant sound effect in a vegetable market.
11. Thumping noises caused by beating of hand against the sides of a truck, signaling it to back or stop is common here. This avoids any mishaps and allows smooth movement in the market.
12. When vegetables like potatoes, onions, corncobs etc. are dumped, along comes a lot of dust and irritants which can cause coughing. So coughing is another common sound.
13. Sound of dumping of sacks, after they have been packed into the truck.
14. Taking off the big brown tapes that seal the fruit boxes is another frequently heard sound, especially near the fruit shops.
15. As the ‘Okhla Sabzi Mandi’ is near a railway stop, you can constantly hear the train’s horn whenever one passes by.
16. By the time we were leaving, it had started raining. And there was already a big puddle on one side. So whenever a truck would pass, it would make a splashing noise.
17. ‘Aye rickshaw!’ – used to call a rickshawala, grab his attention for some work.
18. ‘Kacha, Hara’ – sometimes the vendors use innovative words like these to grab the customers’ attention. He says ‘Kacha, Hara’ but doesn’t specify what he is selling. It could be anything dhaniya, chilly, banana, mango, beans, capsicum, bitter gourd, etc. so when you hear this, you tend to look for the shop and see what he is selling. Good marketing strategy!
19. As we were exiting, a man’s mobile started ringing in a funny Bollywood ring tone. It was funny and at the same time very symbolic of our visit. As that was the only moment when people around us actually silenced a bit, to see where it was coming from.
20. Whistling – I spotted these few people who were using whistling as some kind of codes to call out to each other and signal certain actions. It actually comes handy in a crowded and difficult to move around environment like a vegetable market. 

Sights and Sounds at Okhla Vegetable Market - Part I

Location: Okhla Vegetable Market

Time: 04:10 a.m. to 5:30 a.m.

20 visuals that I liked:

1. Just outside the ‘Okhla Vegetable Market’ something interesting caught my eye. As it’s a wholesale market, a lot of trucks and tempos, had been parked outside. These created good frames, beside the pavement. One such was a green tempo parked in front of an orange truck, and the space in the middle that was left you could see a family sleeping on the dusty pavement.
2. Another visual that I found interesting while still outside was the array of vegetable carrying bicycles. I hadn't expected to spot these, and I have been to vegetable markets before, but obviously not one this big. These bicycles looked adorable; they had woven vegetable baskets tied to the front of the handle bars, and a really big one secured near the seat. Standing in lines, or even when pictured alone they made for a pretty sight.
3. As it was early morning when we visited the ‘Okhla Sabzi Mandi, some people could be found sleeping. But what amazed me how different their beds and sleeping positions were! For e.g. I saw a man sleeping on vegetable plastic baskets, stacked together to make a bed. And another basket which had been kept upside down right next to him had a goat sleeping on it.
4. As we went in further, I spotted a fruit seller, who had a huge tent with watermelons under them. And one could clearly see that he was having a good time as he was quickly selling them off, though it was still so early. It was a good day for him! But right next to his shop, two young men slept on a wooden hawker’s cart. This made the visual very interesting, while the watermelon vendor was sending off truckloads of melons away, among all this commotion and activity these two men just slept through it all.
5. On going further we saw to our right, a lot of Muslims offering their early morning namaz. Special seating arrangements had been made for the auspicious Ramzan season, to host a large number of people. From the market where I stood, you could look into the tent through a gap and see the namaz proceedings.
6. Then I saw a truck, which was being loaded with sacks full of potatoes and onions. There were two workers at the back of the truck, one with the light guiding the other one with the sack. They made a very homely picture.
7. As we approached the area from where the market properly began, I spotted another interesting truck. It had been parked on a slope and had a street light illuminating the back end of the truck. It had a man on the top who was pulling a cover on top of the truck. Because of the slope and the man pulling it in the direction of the slope with all his might, this sight symbolized for me strength and hard work at the vegetable market.
8. Men with weird backpacks caught my attention as we were walking in the main market now. From a distance I couldn't make out what it was. It took me a while to see that they were not really backpacks, but contraptions made by them to lift a bag full of vegetables and carry it easily till the truck. They were all white in color and made of the white plastic sacks that one sees at markets. It had a small wooden block tied on the end, to sport the box or the sack.
9. A very charming fruit shop was something that stood out in a ‘vegetable’ market. There were other fruits shops too, but this one just marked its presence, the vendor must have spent quite some time in setting it up. It had fruits arranged in such a way that it looked like a fort of fruits, the front was lower and the backside was higher. So one could just stand and scan all the fruits easily. The vacant chair in the middle and a weighing matching just added more to the charm. Also fruit baskets and trays hung on strings from the rooftop lining the shop.
10. On one end of the market we saw a corncob wholesaler. This was the biggest corncob shop I think. It was huge and had one man sitting at one corner peeling the excess leafs off them. And one man who helped him was standing next to him. The heaps of already peeled corncobs lay below, which was being managed by two other people who were helping to get them loaded on trucks standing nearby.
11. There was an attention-grabbing man selling potatoes at the market. Though dressed in a normal banyan, lungi and smoking a beedi, there was something remarkable about him which made him so unlike others. He also had a ‘change’ pouch hanging off a really long string on his neck. It looked like he was some character out of a book.
12. There was also a shop selling only packed Khajoor (dates). To go with the festive season of Ramzan and the upcoming Eid. Packed in clear transparent plastic bags and reflecting the light from the bulbs, the Khajoor looked really glossy and silken! Appetizing enough to compel anybody to buy them.
13. Near one of the tea stalls in the market, was a big weighing machine placed. And beside it was kept a charpoy. So the hardworking men could be seen lifting heavy sacks placing them on the weighing machine, then sealing them and taking them to the truck. Whereas on the charpoy right next to it, young men who are lazy bums (you could make out by there behavior) just kept lazing around. One even got scolded by his dad for not working. It showed the contrast very clearly.
14. Sometimes the ordinary looks so different, that it looks other worldly! I felt this when I couldn't recognize green bananas being sold at a shop, because of its placement. They had been placed one top of the other, with the top i.e. the place where they are connected to each other was facing us. So they looked like huge big green flowers, with every banana looking like a leaf to me. It felt like a scene from the evergreen African jungles. So green and so exotic!
15. Early morning and the smell of ‘Chai’ is sure to brighten anybody’s day. So we went and had tea at one of the tea stalls. It was much later that I noticed it reminded me of some place. I couldn't really say it aloud because I thought it sounded weird, but nevertheless I somehow said it. And to my relief Nagma agreed with me. The ‘Chai stall’ reminded one of being in a railway station! Its composition was such that it had a feel of being situated on a platform. For once I actually though that we were waiting for a train and not really in a vegetable market. We were surrounded by vegetables yet getting the feeling of being transported to another world altogether is no mean feat.
16. One of the vendors who was not making much sale, or maybe was unhappy about something sat on the weighing machine of his shop with a grumpy expression on his face.
17. The place where the sacks were being lifted on the backs of workers also had interesting sights. One that I liked was the way they lifted the sacks up. Another worker would help lift the bag, and then he would swing it in a peculiar way above his head, so that it landed on his back. It looked very smooth and there practice showed in the ease with which they were doing it.
18. Amongst the vegetables and fruits in the market, amongst the vibrant colors, a dairy shop is sure to stand out. Selling products like: milk, cheese, khoya, etc. – the shop looks very white! And stacked up on a silver shelf, it shines too. Very different from the rest of the market indeed.
19. At one of the exits/entrances, there was an interesting opening with a triangular top. Vegetable vendors sitting on both sides with light bulbs glowing in their shops, contrasted well with the black sky visible through the opening. The play of light and dark, made it eye catchy.
20. The shop that I liked the most was the one selling carrots and capsicums. It had two levels and an interesting background of colorful doors. On the floor lay the orange carrots, and up the stairs to the raised platform lay green capsicums. Workers could be seen cleaning the vegetables and packing them. Behind them was a dark green cupboard fixed into the wall, then a blue door and just next to it a bright green bigger door. Two sacks of carrots were kept on the left side of the platform. It was full, vibrant, rich and one of the best sights that I saw at the ‘Okhla Sabzi Mandi’.