Delhi, India
india, delhi, hijra, gender, eunuch, make-up
# posted by
maria condinho on October 23rd, 2007
very good -5
# posted by
fotogravenswaay on October 25th, 2006
thnx to the topic in the globetrotter forum I have noticed this series, its great and impressive <5>
# posted by
Akbar S. on October 25th, 2006
-5-
# posted by
scarlet on October 25th, 2006
yes, agree, agree. Reminds me also of the Mahabharata, the great Indian myth, and Arjuna's time spent living as a woman while his family was in hiding from their enemies. He was the greatest warrior. This is still living myth. The series is amazing. -5-
# posted by John Melskens on October 25th, 2006
@ Jacob - you should also post some pictures with that story in the forum.
# posted by
giz on October 25th, 2006
agree,those photo's + story!
# posted by
Jakob Berr on October 25th, 2006
Thanks for the tip! I just opened a discussion called "Hijras" in the Globetrotter forum.
# posted by
Aline on October 25th, 2006
I 100% agree with John. Please open a forum in the Globe-Trotters section. Since the first picture I saw (beginning by the last posted), I was waiting explanations about these scenes, and, yes ! you did it. Wonderful and so interesting. Thank you !
# posted by John Melskens on October 25th, 2006
Dear Jacob, the quality is a bit rouch, as you said they are not edited yet, still aome of them are beautiful allready.
I hope you make a forum-topic of these pictures and tell the story as it should be told.
Thank you for sharing this great series.
=5=
# posted by
Jakob Berr on October 25th, 2006
...you might get bored at times. I'd be happy about any criticism.
Jakob
# posted by
Jakob Berr on October 25th, 2006
...even unbearable. Thus they contribute their half to the circle of discrimination and retaliation that they are caught up in.
For my partner Sabina Yasmin Saba and me it was a thrilling experience to work with them. We got a totally new idea of what gender means and does not mean. Who defines where female ends and male starts? And who cares, anyway?
I hope you like these pictures and I hope they make you think a little. They are not yet edited properly and this is just a rough selection, so...
# posted by
Jakob Berr on October 25th, 2006
...income - prostitution. HIV / AIDS is a huge problem among their community. Over thousands of years, they developed a strict hierarchic system, starting with the chelas (students) at the bottom, who live in the custody of a guru (teacher). The top of the pyramid are the nayaks. There are seven nayaks in India, each of them the head of a khandan (house - these are the different "families"). When they are begging, most of them are very persistent to the point that it becomes uncomfortable...
# posted by
Jakob Berr on October 25th, 2006
This and my following pictures from Delhi are excerpts from a reportage I did on hijras, an ancient eunuch cult in India. They are said to have the gift of blessing and cursing and are thus met with a kind of fearful respect by Indians. At the same time however, due to their differentness, they pass a deprived existence at the bottom of social hierarchy. They live of public dance shows, performances of blessings at marriages and births, begging and - one of their most important sources of...