India: Travel Photography Capturing the Colours of Kerala
- Faruk Kara
- Mar 29
- 2 min read
It has been a long time since I last travelled to India. So long ago that Mumbai was still called Bombay. This time, I had an opportunity to visit an old university friend who had relocated back to Kerala a few years ago. My immediate impressions were the vibrant colours of Kerala.
I didn't know what to expect. The Bombay I had visited back in the 1980s was busy, overcrowded, litter strewn, and with a huge chasm between the very rich and the very poor, which was openly on display. What I had loved was the cosmopolitan nature of the city; Hindus, Muslims, Sikhs, and Christians all thriving cheek-by-jowl.
Kerala was very different. To start with, it is the most educated state in India with a literacy rate of over 95%. It is pluralist, and, while not communist, the communist parties in coalition with other left-wing parties form the ruling LDF alliance. All of these things probably make it less susceptible to divisive populist politics. The poverty that was so visible in Bombay (and, in all fairness, may not be there now in the same way) was not to be seen when I was in Kochi and the surrounding areas.
Travel photography is a genre all by itself. However, it includes nature, landscape, architecture, portraiture, and street photography to capture the essence of the destination. The visual storytelling often conveys adventure, exploration and discovery. It is about bringing them together to tell the story of a place. It is not something I have done a lot of, but I have taken photos in all the genres mentioned.
NOTE: TRAVEL PHOTOGRAPHY, LIKE WILDLIFE AND DOCUMENTARY, SHOULD NOT BE EDITED BEYOND BASIC ADJUSTMENTS LIKE DODGE AND BURN. REMOVING OR ADDING IS A STRICT NO-NO.
Colourful Portraits
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