I have been a Photographer in this lifetime. And I feel I have been a photographer first than being anything else later. And one thing that a photographer does for a lot many hours is only seeing. And if seeing gets him closer to nature, he then starts studying seeing, observing, reading and doing everything else when not taking photographs.
Photography carries a rich history and we can imagine that now when we have got all the equipments and technology by our side where we can just delete an image right after taking it. This could not be even imagined 30 years ago. And through that period came courageous, motivated people who took up camera to pen their observations.
If this post is being read by anyone who is born after 2000, you may feel at home and open yourself up to take some time out to study some of the most brilliant minds who took up image making, who made images when no one was watching. Their documentation changed the ways of seeing. Their truth became world’s truth and their eyes became a collective consciousness of anyone who saw those images and could never erase from their memory.
There are quite a few Image makers who made me who I am today and may be some other day I must write about them, point them out and thank them for everything or may be just thank them for being themselves truly.
But It is important to share something about one of them, today. It is the World Photography day. A day dedicated to the World of Silent Static Cinema.
I felt like writing a short tribute for someone I can describe as the photographer who photographed the world of Gabriel Garcia Marquez’s words. A photographer who not only photographed the unseen, unknown world of mystical entertainment. But the raw, dramatic world of Indian circuses quite like the legendary Mary Ellen Mark. Her photos are haunting, powerful, and deeply human.
Mart Allen Mark(1940-2015)’s photography was driven by a deep sense of empathy and a desire to understand the lives of her subjects. She often spent extended periods with individuals and communities, building trust and capturing their stories with sensitivity.
One project that i have adored for the longest time was also documented in my country, India. In one of the interviews given to LA Times in 1991, she remarks, “I feel very at home there,” Mark said. “In a strange way, it’s where I belong. This country “puts you through everything, both visually and emotionally,” Mark said. It is here where all your senses are activated.”
Mark, then 51, had discovered a kind of an innocence during her first trip to India in 1969, as she watched an Indian circus. In front of her lumbered a huge trained hippopotamus whose entire act was to walk around in a tutu and eat cotton candy. That image stayed with Mark, finally leading her back to India in 1989 and ’90 to a long-simmering personal project to document the Indian circuses.
Sharing that remarkable work of hers, a collection from one of her longest Photo Novel, called as “Indian Circus.“
Bent but unbroken. A young contortionist of Great Raj Kamal Circus twists her body into an impossible shape. Beside her, little Sweety the I puppy sits still, a silent witness to a life of spectacle, and quiet loneliness. The circus is her stage, but where is her home? (1989)
Dangling mid-air, their bodies defy gravity, but look closer—it’s not just balance they’re mastering, it’s survival. In the dim glow of the Great Golden Circus tent, dreams hang by a thread, rehearsed a thousand times yet never certain. (1989)
Ram Prakash Singh sits beside Shyama, his elephant, their bond deeper than words. The circus lights may fade, the crowds may move on, but in this quiet moment, it’s just a man and his lifelong companion. (1989)
Arjun of Great Royal Circus sits in quiet companionship with Mira, his chimpanzee, their bond unspoken yet deeply felt. His painted face, weary yet tender, contrasts with Mira’s gentle gaze—two performers in a world that sees them only as spectacle (1989)
Curled up on a thin mat inside the tents of Great Famous Circus, Calcutta, still in her sequinned costume, she sleeps—perhaps dreaming of the tightrope, the applause, or just a childhood she never truly had. The weight of the circus rests on her tiny shoulders. (1989)
A mother’s strength, both physical and emotional, captured in a single moment—Shavanaas Begum lifting weights, with her three-year-old daughter Parveen watching in awe. In the heart of Goa, 1989, this photograph speaks to the quiet resilience of unbound feminine power.
Twin dwarf brothers Tulsi and Basant, dressed in guerilla costumes, at the Great Famous Circus in Calcutta. The way Basant gently cradles the puppy in his hands speaks volumes about tenderness amidst the spectacle—a moment of pure, unspoken connection.
A young John Paul, in his joker makeup, sits quietly before an image of Mother Mary, his innocence contrasting the weight of the world around him – speaks volumes about the fragility of childhood dreams and the quiet strength that holds them together.
In this moment at Amar Circus, Delhi, 1989, little Jyotsana, her small frame dwarfed by Vahini the elephant, rides through a world of wonder and uncertainty, her eyes filled with both awe and quiet strength.
A lone performer stands beside a massive hippopotamus, their worlds colliding under the tattered tent of the Great Raymon Circus, Madras, 1989. The weight of the beast is matched only by the quiet resignation in the performer’s eyes
Mary Ellen Mark (1940–2015) was a visionary documentary photographer whose powerful storytelling left an indelible mark on the world. Her work, spanning decades, has been showcased in renowned exhibitions, books, and photo essays, capturing raw human emotions like no other.
All images belong to Mary Ellen Mark. Grateful for the legacy she left behind.
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An Evocative World Photography Day to you.
Thank you
If today is the first time you arrived on The Road To Nara, you are heartily welcome ~ Namaste
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I will take this opportunity to introduce you to About me and importantly
As a co-traveller, will take you through the Ten Lessons I learnt from several years on the road, before you coarse on your own Road to Nara.
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You might also like to know about My Little School Project.
If you wish to come over for a visit someday, that you must, you will be heartily welcome here
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Road To Nara by Narayan Kaudinya
ROAD TO NARA 
Fascinating and such quiet moments captured. I remembered my father. Photography was his passion. Thank you.
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Apologies for taking this much time to write Lakshmi Ji. Even makes me nostalgic to learn that about your father. I don’t know if you have shared his work on your site. I would love to see if you do.
Thank you.
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Pingback: – 11 Greatest Indian Circus Photographs of the 20th Century: | DISCUTINDO CONTEMPORANEIDADES
Thank you.
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What a wonderful tribute for World Photography Day. Mark’s work is truly compelling. Mind you, so are many, many visual aspects of India!
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Hello Jane, apologies for taking all the time to write back. You are truly right in saying that about various aspects about India, But to tune in, to generate that vibe and understanding the ones she photographed during this period, is incomparable.
Thank you Jane for your thoughtful comments.
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Thank you Narayan. The photos are wonderful. India is indeed a country that offers much to photographers and anyone interested in humanity. I’m not surprised Mary Ellen loved it there.
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Thank you Caro, apologies for taking all the time to write. And you are bang on right. She was a lover of humanity and the respect, the camaraderie that you feel from these photographs is contagious.
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What marvellous photographs! Thank you for sharing.
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Apologies for taking time to Write back. I absolutely agree with you. These are images of someone who knew how to be human. The interactions, the awe, the quiet pride that one can see in the entertainers was so beautifully, aptly taken.
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Apologies for taking time to Write back. I agree with you. These are images of someone who knew how to be human. The interactions, the awe, the quiet pride that one can see in the entertainers was so beautifully, aptly taken.
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Lives made memorable by Mary Ellen Mark.
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Absolutely Rosa, thank you for your comments. Hope you are healthy and writing well 🙂
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Interesting photos from important moments in the past!
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They were Tanya, looking at these images is special, the feeling of being there, the environment is speaking so much. Thank you for your comment, and apologies for taking time to write back.
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Great pictures, special.
Thanks for sharing
The Fab Four of Cley
🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂
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Thank you Klaus, apologies for taking time to write back. Thank you for your comments.
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What an interesting post. Your words made me stop to consider the importance of photography. Thank you! 😊
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Thanks Pepper, I couldn’t find your name so… and apologies for taking time to write. And thank you for a thought provoking comment.
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Pictures are better than a thousand words. Thank you for sharing.
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Absolutely Donna. Thank you for your words.
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Commended
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Thank you, Swamiji.
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Incredible imagery from another era that captures so much about the human spirit in unique situations and with animal companions. I don’t know if Circus is the same in India as it has changed in the United States.
Photographers are a rare kind, especially those of you who leave comfort behind and really move towards your artist’s concentrated “object,” seeing through the eyes of your subject then, getting to know their spirits and inspirations from “the inside.” Truly, you picked a wonderful occupation, Nara.
Thanks for sharing another photographer who has inspired you.
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Of course, circus is only in the imaginations now, dear Ka.
You cannot keep animals in cages and carry them around anymore, and well what point anyways it will be when major part of this generation gets their high from screens. Who has the energy for life and all the more getting awed by it.
That is true, Photographers are a rare kind and in these visual overload times it feels important to study seeing all the more. Most important subject should be, seeing and Photographers in the last century could be right examples.
Hoping you and family are healthy. Thank you, dear Ka.
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Thank you, Nara! We are as good as can be 🙂. Be well, always.
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dammm youd be fun, steven.kazik@va.gov
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