Kenyon is a master at capturing the strange quirks that make up everyday English life. He has captured East London teens renting luxury cars on prom nights, so it’s not surprising that he’d be willing to fly to India and document the largest camel fair in the world. Unfortunately for him, his plan did not come to fruition.
Jack told Creative Boom that he had just completed a series of photographs in the UK about men who grow gigantic vegetables. He was excited to try the same method abroad. I was originally drawn to India because of the Pushkar Fair’s largest camel festival. The website was not updated when the dates for the camel fair were changed. I missed the event I had travelled over 4,000 miles to attend.
He continues, “It was tragically comical to arrive at the Pushkar Camel Fair expecting 50,000 camels and find a sparse desert with less than 200 remaining camels.” It all worked out, and I took a series of photographs across the country that captured my view on Bharat Mata, or Mother India.
Jack, whose trip had been planned around a camel fair in North India, decided to arrive several weeks before the event and travel up the country. He was disappointed that the festival would not be held, but he still made the most of the trip, continuing to the states of Kerala and Tamil Nadu. He also visited the states of Uttar Pradesh, Sikkim, West Bengal, and Rajasthan.
Jack was still able to run into familiar situations and places, even though he was far away from home. “At the beginning of my trip, I went to the Wonderla Water Park in Kochi. It is one of the largest amusement parks in Japan,” explains Jack. “I love the photos I took, especially those of boys in European football shirts splashing about on the wave pools.
It’s hard to believe that so much is happening in one picture. I love the colours and the fun. “It reminds me how much I loved water parks when I was a child.”
The trip was not only nostalgic but also enlightening. Jack became more familiar with the people and culture of the country the more he travelled. “I didn’t realize how young the population is, but it is evident throughout the country,” Jack adds.
I learned that India has the biggest youth population in the entire world. Over 808 million people, or 66% of the total population, are under 35 years old. It’s a country that feels vibrant and alive, in a very different way to other European countries I have visited. “I tried to capture some of this feeling in my photos.”
Bharat Mata was no different. Jack says that when he was walking around various cities, the sensory overload with all of its sounds, smells, and sights could be very intense. It was important to have a place where you could retreat at times.
Jack was able to try out new techniques and push his photography skills during the six weeks of this series. “I usually take photos in short bursts – a few days at a time – and control the lighting with flash or an assistant,” says Jack.
“Having so much freedom and time on this trip was a blessing. But I also felt the risk of not being able to make a cohesive series of photos. I believe I was able to keep my style – bright, colourful, and humorous – consistent throughout the series. This gives me confidence for other trips.