Photos, Illustrations and other Images

Tucked away in a quiet by-lane of Delhi's busiest commercial centre Connaught Place, Agrasen or Ugrasen ki baoli waits imperially for a lost traveller to reach its steps.Called 

Even in the remotest village of Assam, you would often find one saying ‘paanir nisina daam’ (meaning as cheap as water) or ‘paanir nisina xorol’ (as simple as water) over a good bargain or an easy task. Water is, almost always, associated with simplicity and abundance.

But those were the good old days.

For Kaleshwari Yadav, a resident of Morarji Nagar slums in Mumbai, rain is not her biggest worry; it is the lack of it. Residing adjacent to the Mithi (meaning sweet in Hindi) river, she says when it doesn’t rain, the stagnated river becomes a breeding ground of deadly mosquito vectors of diseases such as malaria and dengue fever.

Ghiyas-ud-din-khilji is a man about whom history is confused. Contemporary records speak of 'a lover of peace, particular in his daily prayers'.

The Shivnath River is the longest tributary of the Mahanadi River.

Traditional water mills or gharats as they are called in the hilly regions of Himachal Pradesh were once found in nearly every village. Today these mechanisms that use running water to grind wheat, rice and maize and also occassionally to extract oil, have been replaced by electricity run mills.

How did your interest in filming water stories come about? Is there any particular issue on water that has interested you? What has guided your selection?

The story of the Falgu is one of greed. Unlike most other rivers, the Falgu is not just a victim of greed, but also an oppressor -- she oppressed none other than Sita herself as she flowed through Gaya in Bihar.

The story

The word 'Theertham' literally means ‘water’ but in Hindu mythology, it is usually the physical holy water body associated with a temple or deity.

A decade ago, Jamwadi village in Yavatmal, Maharashtra, was a famous tourist attraction due to its beautiful lake. Now, there is no lake to speak of thanks to the Raymond factory in Yavatmal. Wastewaster from the factory flows untreated into the lake, which is located 15 kms away.