A holy brahmin with a blemished cow
In his photo series ‘Marginal Trades’, New York City-based photographer Supranav Dash captures and documents the ‘endangered’ and ‘dying’ professions and jobs in India.
His images reveal the positions held by people “who are lower in the society’s Caste System”—such as ear cleaner, broom maker, knife grinder and barber.
According to PetaPixel, it reported how “certain groups of people” were not allowed to deviate from their “family’s prescribed occupations”.
However, with globalization, many of these “age-old tradesmen jobs” are rapidly disappearing, and Dash wants to document these trades and professions before they completely disappear.
“Global trends are constantly changing, therefore, in these increasingly frantic times; it’s very easy to forget our past, culture and traditions,” Dash wrote. “I am not opposed to modernization, but at the same time, I want to slow things down and force one’s self to recognize and remember the beauty of these analog practices.”
“As a photographer, I want to use my craft to pay respect to these tradesmen and bring them to light.”
Ear cleaner
Street typist
Broom maker
Rickshaw puller
Sugar cane seller
Street astrologer
Oil can reseller
Knife grinder
Chaiwala (street tea seller)
Street sweepers
Band party boys
Barber
[via PetaPixel and Supranav Dash]