Thursday 28 August 2014

In Print - 2

If there's one thing I love more than taking photographs, it's telling stories, and war makes for some of the very best stories. Hidden in plain sight, in Calcutta's Dalhousie area, are remnants of a war that happened 258 years ago, when the Nawaab of Bengal, Siraj-ud-Daulah, sacked Calcutta. The ill-prepared and ill-equipped English were routed, and in a controversial, and hotly debated incident, 123 of them perished in what was to become known as The Black Hole Tragedy. I told this story for the readers of Alaap Parba magazine, in Bangla. 

There are some embarrassing typos in the article, including one which says that the original Holwell Monument was 500 feet tall (!!!), but I wasn't given the chance to proof check the article, so I can't really take responsibility for that. Also, had I known that they would print the photos in black and white, I'd have processed them differently. But inspite of the shortcomings, I think it's not bad for a start. I am grateful to Barnali Jana and the folks at Alaap Parba magazine for giving me this opportunity.

Here then, is the article for your reading pleasure.











- by Deepanjan Ghosh

No comments: