Door Darshan

Travel is a different experience each time and the most interesting aspect of travel is the versatile people you come across. Sometimes you are in the quest of something, but you land up with some unusual experiences.

Recently, I visited a village in Karjat, on the outskirts of Mumbai. I was there for a family get together and was staying in a weekend homestay. After all the celebration and fun, I slept at 4.30 am. One thing that ruled my mind was there is a village in the vicinity, and I should go visit it. Village means old doors, and I will certainly find some good subjects to photograph. With this very purpose I woke up at 8 and headed for the village.

It was 8:30 in the morning and everyone in the village was doing their ritual c h o r e s. I went from street to street looking for old doors and was met with curious glances.

I came across this 2nd beautiful old door in a narrow street washed in the early morning light. There were houses on either side of the street. I was oblivious to the surroundings and was clicking pictures. That's when I heard a man's voice from behind, "Why are you photographing my door?" I looked around but could not see anyone.

Apparently, this man was in his bathroom in the house behind, taking bath and stealthily keeping a check on activities in the street. I replied to him without turning around, “I am an artist and I like photographing old doors. I paint them later when I am at home.”

I was speaking to a voice with no body. Yet, I went on with my work. There was a silence for some time and then the voice came again, this time in a body, wrapped in a towel, with a wife along. “What are you doing,” he asked me again?

I said, “I click old door pictures and then paint them.”

On hearing this, he asked his wife to show me their old doors. She obediently took me around their house. I was a little surprised at this gesture, but trusted their good spirit in showing me more door subjects. Those were the old doors I would not fancy clicking, as I choose my subject before photographing it. I look for old dilapidated, run out of colour doors, broken, or wasted, as they have a character and give me layers to paint.

Here I clicked because I wanted to oblige their interest in my interest.

Now this couple got me introduced to their next-door couple. The next-door couple ran a grocery store and were little elderly. I along with the two couples sat in their p o r c h discussing my interest and how I came to be there in their village.

The second couple also took me through their house, and I obliged them too by taking some pictures of their doors. The second couple also offered to make me some tea, to which I declined as I am not a tea person. Yet they insisted, and I obliged.

Now, the curious man who first identified me asked, "When will you paint our door?” I was aghast at his misunderstanding. He thought I am a door painter. I clarified patiently, I am an artist and I paint on canvases. Next time I am in your village I will present you with one of my paintings.

However, this man's intent was different, he was not interested in my canvas. He thought I am here to paint the old doors and would paint his doors too. His wife who was washing clothes and disturbed with my entry and the entire episode, now got up and commanded to her husband, "Common, let's go," and he followed suit.

The couple who offered me tea however sat with me and chatted despite the customers coming into their grocery shop. They proudly told me of their village, the river, the power station on the river, their son who is an engineer and recently got a job in Railways in Mumbai, the loans that they have on their head. They also pointed me to some other interesting old doors in the vicinity. They went on to talk as if we had known for ages.

It was a morning well spent with strangers, but my purpose was to find doors, and so I excused them saying, my family must be waiting as I did not inform anyone I am here.

I found a couple of beautiful doors in the village that day. A granny posed for me in front of her old door.

Going around alone, on foot gives me an essence of the place, its people and a lot of stories emerge. Be it doors or dreams, we humans have so much to share.

I soon bid adieu to the village, and returned to my big family and the usual fun and chaos, I was meant to be in.