The waves from the sea were rolling slowly to the shores and were almost touching my feet. There is some sort of pleasure in just watching the sea and the waves in action. But this sea was unlike what I had seen earlier. I had been to Goa and the sea there looked energetic and the waves impatient to jump on the shores. They were also whiter and cleaner .
This sea had lost its momentum. It felt like it was tired and was overworked. The waves too were unwillingly coming to the shore and were quickly running back. The waves were dirty brown in color , it was like they get very less time everyday to clean themselves up. Even the beach sand was sticky and had lost its true identity. Instead of slipping through my toes, they were clinging to it .
This was Mumbai and I was at Juhu beach.
I could see a lot of people on the beach having a good time. There were young kids who were further inside the sea and were enjoying the water, they didnt care about the water and its hygiene. They were just too busy enjoying .
As I was watching all of this , I felt a pat on my shoulders. As I turned , I saw a man in his fifties smiling at me.
“Sir Photo lenge ? ” (Sir , Do you want a photo ?) he asked while lifting his black canon camera that was dangling around his neck .
“No , Thank you ” I said and to my surprise he didn’t ask again. He hung his head down for a moment and moved ahead asking the same question to other people around the beach.
I was curious. Who in this age of smartphone will need a picture from a third person. Everyone can click as many pics as they want in their phone without paying a dime. My eyes were fixated on him , he was wearing a grey cap and brown shirt that resembled the color of the waves. After me, he met almost a dozen more people , all giving him the same disappointing answer “No”.
Why would someone choose a profession which is so out of time right now ?
With same curiosity , I went near him. He was now sitting on the corner of beach drinking water.
“Uncle , why are you doing this photography ? you know everyone has a phone and can click as many pictures as they want . Why don’t you do something else ?” I asked
He gave a wisely smile “Saab its not as bad as it looks. Mumbai is a big big city. The business is not as good as it was few years ago, but still it helps pay the bills and take care of my family at my home town.”
“But why dont you do something else . There are so many things that you can do here .” I said still not convinced with his answers.
“Because Saab , this is the only profession I know where I can put a smile of people’s face. So I will do it as long as I can” He smiled.
I had no words left. He is indeed trying to put smile on people’s face although it might be just for a moment but still .. and he loves his job which is again such a rare thing in today’s world.
As I was lost in my thoughts , I heard a voice
“Bhaiyya .. Photu lenge hamara ?” (Brother , can you take a pic ?)
The Photographer smiled and nodded
“Accha Saab .. I take your leave. Have a good day ”
We both waved at each other and he left for his calling.
Mumbai is indeed a Unique City.
