Ashura Processions, Dhaka, December 2009

The Holy Ashura Processions

08 January 2009
Dhaka, Bangladesh

Its been 11 days short of one year; Ashura processions are back! It was 08 January of this year that thousands came out on the streets celebrating holy Ashura. That time I went to the main procession of the city, starting from the old part of Dhaka. The year before I was at Mohammadpur, where the processions usually carry a completely different mood. So, during the last couple of years, I was able to observe the diversity of celebrations. It really is worth exploring this variety.

With this thought in mind, I planned to be at Mohammadpur this year. This is usually one of the two most important processions of the day. The effort put in by the participants into these processions has to be noted. From the design of Tazia to designing costumes, to the practice of performances, their devotion to the cause is something to see.

Usually it starts in the late afternoon. The usual starting places are the Bihari camps of Mohammadpur. Being very near these starting places, I was looking to go out late, to be with the crowd for a couple of hour or so, and ultimately to come back with some experience to remember. I went out with my camera right after 4:00PM (Daylight Saving). I was there on the streets around Mohammadpur and Mirpur Road until around 7:00PM, when the procession came to Tajmahal Road and got split in different sections. It was dark when I finally separated from the crowd.

Here are some of the glimpses from the event.

From Ashura Celebrations, Mohammadpur, Dhaka, December 2009

Heir.......01

From Ashura Celebrations, Mohammadpur, Dhaka, December 2009

Flags.......

From Ashura Celebrations, Mohammadpur, Dhaka, December 2009

Mobile camera......

From Ashura Celebrations, Mohammadpur, Dhaka, December 2009

The Procession.....01


Johuri Mahalla in Mohammadpur is most favourite in terms of attractiveness during the Tajia processions. The confined spaces of the area makes the procession vibrant and colourful. The Tajia seems at home in this place. The moment the procession moves to larger roads, it becomes a bit unnatural; something like an export! At Johuri Mahalla, the large concentration of Biharis makes it so special. This really looks like their own procession there!

From Ashura Celebrations, Mohammadpur, Dhaka, December 2009

Startled.......01

From Ashura Celebrations, Mohammadpur, Dhaka, December 2009

Startled.......02

From Ashura Celebrations, Mohammadpur, Dhaka, December 2009

The Procession.....02

From Ashura Celebrations, Mohammadpur, Dhaka, December 2009

Startled.......03

From Ashura Celebrations, Mohammadpur, Dhaka, December 2009

The noisiest bed.....


This year round, I was really surprised to see the small size of the Mohammadpur procession. And when I say small, I mean really small. I haven't seen such a small procession before. It was almost as if there are lesser number of people participating!! I've tried to find the reason behind it, but haven't found any authenticated sources. One source told me that it might because of lack of finding resulting from political changes. Well, its difficult to guess though.

From Ashura Celebrations, Mohammadpur, Dhaka, December 2009

Heart of the Tazia.......01

From Ashura Celebrations, Mohammadpur, Dhaka, December 2009

Heart of the Tazia.......02

From Ashura Celebrations, Mohammadpur, Dhaka, December 2009

Heart of the Tazia.......03

From Ashura Celebrations, Mohammadpur, Dhaka, December 2009

Running repairs.......


Apart from the difference in size of the procession and number of Tajia, there weren't too many things that have changed during the last couple of years. Have seen some innovative ways of designing Tajia. One of the main Tajias originating from Johuri Mahalla had a miniature 3D map of the then Karbala under it. And as usual, the Tajias were designed by people who were more driven by emotions, rather than practicality. The Tajias got tangled with wires at many places on the road due to their height. At one point, the main Tajia had to lose it top spires to make any process!!

From Ashura Celebrations, Mohammadpur, Dhaka, December 2009

The collections department......

From Ashura Celebrations, Mohammadpur, Dhaka, December 2009

Children power.....01

From Ashura Celebrations, Mohammadpur, Dhaka, December 2009

Private video.....

From Ashura Celebrations, Mohammadpur, Dhaka, December 2009

Animated faces.......

From Ashura Celebrations, Mohammadpur, Dhaka, December 2009

Drums.....


This time, the procession moved to Mirpur Road, a move that I haven't seen before. Usually the procession moves through Mohammadpur alone and doesn't spill out in Mirpur Road. Anyway, it seems that they got permission for that this year. But the procession was so small that they could hardly dominate the road!! Once they reached Asad Avenue and combined with the other procession, the overall crowd size became a bit bigger. But still, the size remained pretty small.

From Ashura Celebrations, Mohammadpur, Dhaka, December 2009

Children power.....02

From Ashura Celebrations, Mohammadpur, Dhaka, December 2009

Children power.....03

From Ashura Celebrations, Mohammadpur, Dhaka, December 2009

The holy horse......01

From Ashura Celebrations, Mohammadpur, Dhaka, December 2009

The holy horse......02

From Ashura Celebrations, Mohammadpur, Dhaka, December 2009

Heir.......02

From Ashura Celebrations, Mohammadpur, Dhaka, December 2009

Children power.....04

From Ashura Celebrations, Mohammadpur, Dhaka, December 2009

Spectators.......

From Ashura Celebrations, Mohammadpur, Dhaka, December 2009

Startled.......04

From Ashura Celebrations, Mohammadpur, Dhaka, December 2009

The leader......

From Ashura Celebrations, Mohammadpur, Dhaka, December 2009

"Say cheese!!"

From Ashura Celebrations, Mohammadpur, Dhaka, December 2009

A fashion statement......

From Ashura Celebrations, Mohammadpur, Dhaka, December 2009

Heated personality......

This year's small prcession was full of frame-throwing stunts!! These stunts are usually there all the time. But this year seemed like a particularly big concentration of these people. These young chaps were taking a lotta risks to display their valour! And in doing so, putting themselves as well as others in grave danger of personaly injury. And in fact, we've witnessed one of the performers getting burns over his upper body after one of his friends failed to control the flame!!

Streets of Dhaka, December 2008

There's Life on the Streets

Dhaka, Bangladesh
December 2008

After an interesting street photography venture in December 2007, I decided to try my luck once more. Had been struggling with time to do this all throughout the year, but in vain. This December, I was determined and had been able to manage at least some time to make a meaningful portfolio.

December is an exceptional time for Bangladesh; and the December of 2008 was even more extraordinary. Being a sub-tropical country, winter plays a comparatively smaller part in our weather system. December and January are thus a lot different from other months for that fact alone. Eid-ul Azha also was in December of 2008. This was he first real event of the month. December is also the month which got us our freedom during our War of Liberation in 1971. Although our independence was declared in March of 1971, victory was achieved only on 16th December of that year. This event always makes December an exceptional month. The last exceptional event of the month was National Election. This was the first election since 2001. And the most sought after because of many reasons. The country being in the hands of a Caretaker Government for two years, the election played a significant part in the overall socio-economic life.

So, here are some of the captures from December 2008.



Foggy Motijheel........ for several days, Dhaka was blanketed by thick fog during most of the morning hours..... this was taken at the heart of Motijheel Commercial Area on a holiday right after Eid-ul Azha..... roads were mostly empty..... life was yet to go back to normal...... on regular days this place is busy like a fish-market.....



The gloomy face of the Central Bank.... the world economy is in turmoil..... Bangladesh Bank faces stiff challenges in the days ahead to keep the money market in control......



Not yet ready...... a city bus counter is unmanned...... its a holiday; people are not supposed to make a rush that early in the morning....... its a lazy winter morning.......



Newspaper seller......... for streetside micro businesses, its a normal day........ newspapers have buyers on any day, be it a weekday or a weekend......



Still reaching for the skies........ "Balaka" is an important sculpture in the middle of Dilkusha Commercial Area....... it was vandalised by religious zealots some days ago.... the wounds are yet to heal......



37 years of freedom.........01 ......16th December 2008..... freedom was achieved exactly 37 ago...... yet another election is coming up, which is illustrated by the forest of posters hanging over the street...... how the political parties have upheld the national flag over these years can be doubted though........



Urban noise......04 ........walls are being used as tools of advertisement....... but how many are actually turning towards them with admiration can be doubted though........



37 year of freedom.........02....... election posters overshadowing Victory Days flags........



37 year of freedom.........08........ national flags are being sold on Victory Day....... this is the day we take oath to serve the nation...... do we really keep those words, or do they become something like the empty promises made by the politicians over the years?



Election fever...........05...... those election posters have little meaning for some who are not likely to be able to live a better life as a result of the election.....



37 year of freedom.........11...... the spirit of freedom is in all of us..... Victory Day provides us with the spark that we need for a renewed oath....



37 year of freedom.........13...... Victory Day, 2008



Election fever...........10........ National Election of December 2008 is certainly going to have an impact on the businesses of the country.......



Election fever...........11..... for some, life changes very slowly....



Election fever...........14....... no place is out of election campaign.......



Urban noise.........08....... Election Commission set out some rules at the start of 2008 elections; one of those rules was the use of black-and-white posters..... these B&W posters competed for attention with the colourful posters of Bengali movies.... in recent times, typical Bengali movies had failed to attract the audience regularly...... but election is supposed to attract more attention, even though the posters are not colourful........



Urban noise.........09........ Bengali movies, in recent times, have not been able to uphold the cultural values of the population..... they had been under tremendous criticism from all quarters and the pressure to change had been high...... the industry is somewhat heads-down now.....



war and peace.......... for some, the daily struggle starts early...... for others, peace prevails longer....



portrait, Kaptan Bazar........01



facade, chaotic............01



concrete jungle..........01



urban noise...........02....... posters on the wall represent a cultural change of the time....... information displayed in some of today's posters were once considered taboo....... people always had the option of turning away, but the attitude towards them is ever-changing.......



thats good morning for you, but not for everyone...........



drivers of the economy..........01..... this frantic charge is for timely arrival at their jobs...... Bangladesh may be a Third World country, but the economy of this country is heavily dependent on the export-oriented ready-made garments sector, which is driven by the predominantly female workforce......