Beyond a 1,000 Words

We asked Express lensmen to pick their ‘favourite’ clicks. Battling the problem of plenty, they choose these frames, and explain why

A Sanesh, Kochi

Colleagues here are curious why I chose this pic over some frames that I had clicked during Cyclone Ockhi or the 2018 floods. I chose hope over despair, simple. Deep inside, I always rued the fact that I couldn’t fulfil my dream of becoming a professional footballer. Diego Maradona was my idol, be it his on-field game or off-field charisma. A detour in life landed me in journalism, instead of the football field. But that eventually led to something beyond a dream. Maradona landed in Kerala on October 24, 2012, and I was assigned to cover an event in Kannur. I still remember vividly, standing close to my idol, wide-eyed like an overexcited kid. And I recall Paulo Coehlo’s line in the Alchemist: “When you want something, all the universe conspires in helping you to achieve it.”

Vincent Pulickal, T’Puram

It was daybreak on July 6, 2019. I was at the desolate Kaalipaara near the Neyyar Dam in Thiruvananthapuram. Looking for some sunrise frames, I trekked up the hill. The sight near a ridge stunned me. A pack of dogs were preventing a troop of monkeys from the woods below to climb up to the hilltop. It was clear the dogs did not want the monkeys to enter their village on the other side. It was war! The frame gets me thinking of the vicious cycle — man encroaches forests, wild animals ‘invade’ human territories. The dogs, meanwhile, are caught in between.

B P Deepu, T’Puram

This pic was clicked on Children’s Day, 2014. It was a regular day at work. Along with a reporter, I arrived at the Papanasam beach in Varkala to cover a tourism-related story. Two foreign tourists from Belarus were sunbathing on the beach. I sought their permission to click pics, and they happily obliged. One of them rose to take a dip in the sea before being clicked. A moment later, out of nowhere, a snake crawled towards the beach mat used by that woman. Why? The question still puzzles me. Perhaps, because we have been encroaching their leisure spaces?   

E Gokul, Kozhikode

 
I have always heard veterans say photography is all about that ‘decisive moment’. Clicking this picture recently at the International Kayaking Fest in Kodenchery (August 10) helped me understand that dictum better. A participant suddenly got caught in a swirl and fell into the gushing water. She may have been an ace, but, at that moment, she seemed hapless, reaching out for help. While looking through the lens, I could sense my fingers flutter. There was a reflex urge to extend my arm. To me, the frame captures the human quest for thrill, adventure, risk, unpredictability, and the universal helplessness in front of Nature’s power.     

T P Sooraj, Kochi

It was a memento mori moment for me. Covid cases and deaths were soaring. I was at the Kozhikode Corporation crematorium, where five Covid victims were being cremated (April 22, 2021). Though I had handled several such grim assignments earlier, this one was eerie. Even as I focused on the frames, thought of the inevitability of death struck me deep. The pain of bereavement, fear of contracting the virus, the selfless service of frontline workers, the uncertainty of life... All these thoughts flashed through my mind, like a mangled mess, in that one second. And then came clarity. It was catharsis of a different kind.  

We asked Express lensmen to pick their ‘favourite’ clicks. Battling the problem of plenty, they choose these frames, and explain why A Sanesh, Kochi Colleagues here are curious why I chose this pic over some frames that I had clicked during Cyclone Ockhi or the 2018 floods. I chose hope over despair, simple. Deep inside, I always rued the fact that I couldn’t fulfil my dream of becoming a professional footballer. Diego Maradona was my idol, be it his on-field game or off-field charisma. A detour in life landed me in journalism, instead of the football field. But that eventually led to something beyond a dream. Maradona landed in Kerala on October 24, 2012, and I was assigned to cover an event in Kannur. I still remember vividly, standing close to my idol, wide-eyed like an overexcited kid. And I recall Paulo Coehlo’s line in the Alchemist: “When you want something, all the universe conspires in helping you to achieve it.” Vincent Pulickal, T’Puram It was daybreak on July 6, 2019. I was at the desolate Kaalipaara near the Neyyar Dam in Thiruvananthapuram. Looking for some sunrise frames, I trekked up the hill. The sight near a ridge stunned me. A pack of dogs were preventing a troop of monkeys from the woods below to climb up to the hilltop. It was clear the dogs did not want the monkeys to enter their village on the other side. It was war! The frame gets me thinking of the vicious cycle — man encroaches forests, wild animals ‘invade’ human territories. The dogs, meanwhile, are caught in between. B P Deepu, T’Puram This pic was clicked on Children’s Day, 2014. It was a regular day at work. Along with a reporter, I arrived at the Papanasam beach in Varkala to cover a tourism-related story. Two foreign tourists from Belarus were sunbathing on the beach. I sought their permission to click pics, and they happily obliged. One of them rose to take a dip in the sea before being clicked. A moment later, out of nowhere, a snake crawled towards the beach mat used by that woman. Why? The question still puzzles me. Perhaps, because we have been encroaching their leisure spaces?    E Gokul, Kozhikode   I have always heard veterans say photography is all about that ‘decisive moment’. Clicking this picture recently at the International Kayaking Fest in Kodenchery (August 10) helped me understand that dictum better. A participant suddenly got caught in a swirl and fell into the gushing water. She may have been an ace, but, at that moment, she seemed hapless, reaching out for help. While looking through the lens, I could sense my fingers flutter. There was a reflex urge to extend my arm. To me, the frame captures the human quest for thrill, adventure, risk, unpredictability, and the universal helplessness in front of Nature’s power.      T P Sooraj, Kochi It was a memento mori moment for me. Covid cases and deaths were soaring. I was at the Kozhikode Corporation crematorium, where five Covid victims were being cremated (April 22, 2021). Though I had handled several such grim assignments earlier, this one was eerie. Even as I focused on the frames, thought of the inevitability of death struck me deep. The pain of bereavement, fear of contracting the virus, the selfless service of frontline workers, the uncertainty of life... All these thoughts flashed through my mind, like a mangled mess, in that one second. And then came clarity. It was catharsis of a different kind.