Tag Archives: India

The Thar Desert, or Great Indian Desert, is an arid region that forms a natural boundary between India and Pakistan. A relatively large area, it spreads across four Indian states (Gujarat, Haryana, Punjab, and Rajasthan) and two Pakistani states. The Thar Desert is the most densely populated desert in the world, with 83 people per square km. This population lives in small villages, far apart from each […]

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There are countless deities in the Indian pantheon. Sometimes it seems that the number of religions and cults is almost as high. Scattered around the Western Thar Desert of India and Pakistan are villages of people calling themselves Bishnois. Followers of “Jambhaji”, as Guru Jambheshwar of Bikaner (b.1451) became known, these people are predominantly descended from Jat peasants and Rajput warriors from the north: Haryana, […]

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I’ve been dreaming of camels lately… That’s probably because the annual five-day Pushkar Camel Festival in Rajasthan, Northern India, finished earlier this week, and a number of my friends – including photographer Karl Grobl and local guide DV Singh – were there. I couldn’t help but feel a little envious, as it has been two years since I visited India […]

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It was only the promise of masala chai, or “mixed-spice tea”, that got me out of bed before the sun, and onto a Jaisalmer rooftop with my tripod and cameras on a cold November morning. I love chai. Nothing says “India” to me like chai: that hot sweetened tea, made rich from the boiled buffalo milk (or full-cream cow milk) and spicy […]

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It has to be one of the most unusual and amusing “ritual” displays I have ever seen! Every day before sunset, thousands of Indians and a smattering of foreign tourists pour into the Indian BSF (Border Security Force) region at the Attari-Wagah joint check post (JCP) to watch the ceremonial lowering of the Indian flag. We – a group of travel-photographers under the […]

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