Mahesh Umrania lost his sight at age seven, as glaucoma crept up on him. But that has not stopped the 27-year-old musician from Mumbai from pursuing his dreams. One of them was to take photographs.
"The idea of being able to pursue photography in spite of my blindness excited me," said Umrania, who is a professional musician. “I never intended to take photographs for commercial use. I take pictures for myself.”
Umrania was helped along to his goal by photographer Partho Bhowmick, who started a programme called Blind with Camera in 2006. At a workshop organised by Bhowmick, Umrania quickly learned to handle a camera with skill. He tries to compose his photographs by having a scene described to him, which allows him to form a mental image of his surroundings. His greatest desire is to someday possess technology that allows him to capture a person's expression. That, he says, is the one thing that he has forgotten over the years of being unsighted.
You can hear his story here, as told to Chhavi Sachdev.
Here is a section of Umrania's work.
The shadow of a tree on a footpath. One of the first photographs Umrania clicked. "I didn't know that my photograph captured the feet of people walking by as well," he said. "It is unexpected things like these that make the experience of photography special."
The music room at Victoria Memorial School for the Blind, Tardeo.
A darkroom in a photography school. This was taken when Umrania traveled to the UK.
The train tracks at Nalasopara station in Mumbai. This is among Umrania's more recent photographs.
Umrania took this picture while focusing on the noise of the flapping wings of birds taking off.
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"The idea of being able to pursue photography in spite of my blindness excited me," said Umrania, who is a professional musician. “I never intended to take photographs for commercial use. I take pictures for myself.”
Umrania was helped along to his goal by photographer Partho Bhowmick, who started a programme called Blind with Camera in 2006. At a workshop organised by Bhowmick, Umrania quickly learned to handle a camera with skill. He tries to compose his photographs by having a scene described to him, which allows him to form a mental image of his surroundings. His greatest desire is to someday possess technology that allows him to capture a person's expression. That, he says, is the one thing that he has forgotten over the years of being unsighted.
You can hear his story here, as told to Chhavi Sachdev.
Here is a section of Umrania's work.
The shadow of a tree on a footpath. One of the first photographs Umrania clicked. "I didn't know that my photograph captured the feet of people walking by as well," he said. "It is unexpected things like these that make the experience of photography special."
The music room at Victoria Memorial School for the Blind, Tardeo.
A darkroom in a photography school. This was taken when Umrania traveled to the UK.
The train tracks at Nalasopara station in Mumbai. This is among Umrania's more recent photographs.
Umrania took this picture while focusing on the noise of the flapping wings of birds taking off.
