A photographer’s success hinges on access. This is an underlying thread in the tapestry woven in this week’s show. Our discussion covers multiple facets and cultural attributes of Indian society, as seen through the eyes of a photographer with a knack for being in the right place at the right time.

In this month’s episode of the series, Picturing World Cultures, we speak with Indian photographer Pablo Bartholomew about his long career as a documentarian and photojournalist.

From his early intimate views of 60s-era hippies launching a counterculture invasion from the West to his photojournalistic coverage of historic events, Bartholomew shares insights about dynamics at work behind the scenes. We also discuss changes to the marketplace for pictures over time, and whether an iconic picture is still able to affect a change in the world.

As an antidote to a life chasing the news, Bartholomew embarked on a ten-year documentation of India’s remote Naga tribes. In the show’s second half, he walks us through his background research and the permissions process involved in photographing tribespeople and their customs with professional lighting gear.

 There’s also a personal motivation behind Bartholomew’s Naga Project. As a child, he had heard many stories about goodwill the Naga showed his father’s family during their flight from Burma to India during World War II.

 “Principally, what I couldn't wrap my head around was that headhunters, they're supposed to be these ferocious people. Why would they let fair game pass through their backyard, to the degree where they would provide food and shelter?” he says. “So, there was in this savage something very kind. And I wanted to find out what the contradiction was.”

Tune in today for more on the Naga tribes and other stories from India!

If you haven’t already listened, check out all the episodes of our Picturing World Cultures podcast series here.

 

 Guest: Pablo Bartholomew

Episode Timeline:

2:16 : Pablo describes how the caste system functions as a defining aspect of Indian culture.

7:18 : The influx of the Western hippy counterculture in India as recorded in Pablo’s earliest pictures.

12:27 : Capturing life on the streets of Delhi, Bombay, and Calcutta, a photo essay on Calcutta’s Chinatown, and Pablo’s work with the renowned Indian film director Satyajit Ray.

17:05 : The rise of Pablo’s photojournalism career, the dynamics of a photographer’s access, and his iconic images of the tragic gas leak at Bhopal.

29:09 : Pablo discusses how the work of a photojournalist has changed in the past 40 years.

32:53 : Go-to camera gear, the various cameras Pablo’s used over the years, and his transition from analog to digital.

36:37 : Tips for mitigating the heat and humidity of India, plus equipment for image storage and film scanning.

40:10 : Episode Break

41:23 : Pablo’s long-term project documenting the Naga tribes in Northeast India, his preliminary ethnographic research on the tribes, and gaining permission to photograph with full lighting gear. 

51:43 : Animist practices within the Naga tribes, and distinctions between tribes within the Naga identity.

1:00:05 : Naga rituals it may be too late to photograph, and a memorable festival held by the Konyak tribe.

1:04:09 : Pablo’s cross-cultural project documenting economic emigres from India who have resettled in the US, France, England, Madagascar, and Portugal.

1:14:38 : Pablo Bartholomew answers our PWC Visual Questionnaire.

 

Guest Bio: Pablo Bartholomew, a self-taught photographer born in New Delhi in 1955. His father Richard was a noted art critic as well as a photographer, allowing Pablo to learn photography at home at a very young age.

In his subsequent career of nearly fifty years, Pablo has documented societies in conflict and transition, while also recording intimate details of his own generation maturing amid a changing India.

From 1983 to 2004, his photojournalistic work was featured in every major international publication, from National Geographic to Paris Match and beyond. Pablo’s photographs have been recognized by World Press Photo on three different occasions, including a 1985 ‘Picture of the Year’ award for his riveting image from the Bhopal gas tragedy.

In 2013, he was awarded the Padma Shri by the Government of India for his contributions to photography, and in 2014, he was honored with the status of Chevalier de L'Ordre des Arts et des Lettres by the French government.

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