The right reasons

After me feeling the way I was feeling when I wrote my last post i pretty much gave up photographing "significantly" and as my advisor suggested, i half heartedly clicked around for clicking sake. And then Khizzy and I went to an exhibition. It was a desi guy's exhibition and anything desi happening in NY tends to catch my interest and attention. The photographer was said to have travelled throughout the United States for over a period of seven years photographing Muslim communities and people praying inside mosques. We all know what a no go that is and that permission to photograph inside mosques is close to impossible to get.
Impressed by him before even seeing the work i went excitedly to the exhibition prepared to be blown away.
Unfortunately, in all honesty, although I did really really like some of his photographs, the whole hype of 'seven years of photographing Muslim communities' fell short of what I was hoping to see. I wanted to see juxtaposition of cultures, of races, of something shocking happening...something that showed me the different ways Muslims managed to be Muslims in various parts of the US. I didn't get what I wanted from the show. In fact, I got motivated. I could photograph what I wanted to see myself. And why shouldn't I? Was that not the whole point of being a photographer? :)

And so I went begging mosques to let me in. researching their websites convincing them they could use a little upgrade on the web and were welcome to use my photographs once I took them ( what a way to sell eh?). Finally, one sufi mosque let me in.
They let me in after I made sure they understood I would not be said "no" to. I went and attended their Zaikr. I made sure the manager saw me. I made sure he knew i was not going anywhere till he let me photograph. Persistence pays off.

I have never really been in a mosque to simply pray. That is just not done in Karachi. I have never been inclined to try since Maulvi's back home, the ones i cross on the streets wearing perfectly decent shalwar kameez, tend to give me bad ass looks
( is it the hair i ask?) Over here, i walked up to about 5 or 6 uber religious ankle high shalwar wearing maulvi's in jeans, boots, a shirt and a scarf ( what my sister calls my rocker look) and have never been treated with more respect in my life. They smiled. Warmly. They listened to me and didn't yell "Astaghfirullah taubah taubah Jahunnum mein jao" to me. They refused politely and when i asked them to reconsider, heard me patiently and then actually gave me permission.
Is it odd that i feel closer to Islam away from home, apparently an Islamic Republic, in a land like the US?
I saw men and women praying in the same mosques on separate sides and chatting later after the congregation pleasantly. I wanted to be a part of that pure and decent community where if i man looked at you in a mosque he smiled and walked away or said hello...not glare at you like you were willing him to think impure thoughts and drive him to hell.

Everyday, every single day, i think how lucky i am to have had this chance to come to New York to discover this new side of faith and to finally get on the right track researching and photographing something i actually care about.

stay safe people,
especially my comrades in Pakistan.

k