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Siddharth Kejriwal

@sidkejriwal

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documentary filmmaker | photographer | lawyer
@columbiajournalism @bbcnews
📍NYC

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When I landed in Kargil this time, my friends texted me to be safe. Some asked me if it was okay to walk on the streets casually? What about militancy?

It is indeed a travesty that people know this beautiful town only for its war association. It was this town's misfortune to become a site of border infiltration. The people of this region staunchly stood by the military and provided all sorts of support. Yet it takes argumentation to convince the mainlanders of their patriotism in order to survive.

A few years ago, when I visited this region for the first time (in winters), I was humbled by the warmth and hospitality of the people. While I had the privilege of witnessing the harshness of the climate for only a couple of weeks, these people endure these conditions their entire lives. Yet they're forced to live at the margins of the society and time and again required to prove their nationalism to people that cares little about their existence.
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#Kargil #Drass #ladakhtourism #ladakh #ladakhdiaries #incredibleindia #india #indiaphotography #indiapictures #photographers_of_india #yourshotphotographer #natgeoindia #lonelyplanetindia #portraitsfromtheworld #photojournalism #condenasttraveller #outlooktraveller #atlasobscura taken in Kargil by @sidkejriwal

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3 years ago

As a Landscape Photographer, I've always been fascinated by layers. The segmentation of the picture that forms the heart and soul of a composition. There's no place better than the Himalayas to understand the value and aesthetics of layers. I've always loved the mountains for the value they have added to my life.

That fine morning, as we were cruising from Srinagar to Kishtwar, cutting through one of the most beautiful and the most underrated valleys of Kashmir, I saw the morning unfold in front of my bare eyes. The subtle rays of the sun colored the ubiquitous black into a faint blue.

The clouds cascaded through the gaps, kissing the peaks on the way, revealing a dark silhoutte of the dominant landmass. I couldn't believe my eyes. I wanted to breathe in the moment and never let it escape my system. I wanted to eternalise the moment forever in my memory. And right then, I pressed the shutter.
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#himalaya #himalayas #himalayangeographic #himalayasin #kashmirdairies #beingkashmiri #kashmir #incredibleindia #indiaclicks #indiapictures #photographers_of_india #_coi #_woi #_soi #yourshotphotographer #beautifuldestinations #passionpassport #condenasttraveller #tripotocommunity #oph #landscapephotography #mountainlife #earthpix #natgeoindia #lonelyplanetindia #india_undiscovered taken in Kishtwar Valley by @sidkejriwal

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5 years ago

I knocked at the door of the only lit house in the deserted village of Kyol, with the lone light bulb representing my hope of finding a place to stay that windy night. An old couple emerged out of the shadows and after sizing us up, they let us in, and offered some pulao for dinner. The conversation at dinner was tense and uncle was clearly vigilant about these midnight intruders. We ate and slept almost immediately.

The next morning as we sat feasting on breakfast in their humble kitchen, he began narrating his experiences as an Indian Spy into China. How he had helped the army gather intel traveling under the garb of a local native. He then proceeded to show us his Indian Army card which allowed him to pass through check posts. This guy right here was a hardened army associate who after years of not trusting people had decided to place his faith in us. This effort of his was truly flattering and satisfying. The old couple was childless. I genuinely felt sorry for the couple and hoped to contribute to their lives in some way. But I guess it was presumptuous of me to think they weren’t satisfied with what they had. Who knows they might enjoy this carefree life where one chose to live one’s life on one’s will.

The quiet house was a quintessential Ladakhi structure. Large rooms punctuated by low hanging entrances, narrow alleyways, and an expansive garden. The family ran a small grocery shop of their own and a few of the rooms were stocked with the inventory. I found the house particularly warm and decided to take some portraits of the couple and their humble habitat. Both graciously posed and showed me around with childlike excitement, something that made me feel special. I like to believe that somewhere deep within, they saw their own younger one in me. With that feeling in mind, I bade goodbye to my hosts with a promise to return.
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#ladakh #travelblogger
#travelingram #ladakhtourism #kyol #photographers_of_india #yourshotphotographer #tripotocommunity #bbctravel #travelleisure #condenasttraveller #indiapictures #incredibleindia #natgeotravellerindia #ladakhdiaries #portraitphotography #nikonindia #beautifuldestinations #passionpassport taken in Ladakh, India by @sidkejriwal

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3 years ago

This is probably the longest I’ve stayed away from home. And one question just keeps coming back — what if the cost of ambition outweighs the profit of success?
I’m far from home. Far from my culture. Just trying to build something of my own. But the foundation of this dream? It was laid somewhere else entirely. In those dusty by-lanes of Jaipur. In those unassuming conversations with fellow delusional peers. In those nights of looking at the stars and actually wishing for them.
Maybe transition was always written into my destiny. Maybe it started the day my eyes adjusted to the distance. The struggle isn’t to keep working — that part’s almost easy. It’s to keep justifying the cost against a profit not yet earned.

#jaipur #rajasthan #india #nyc #photography taken in Jaipur, Rajasthan by @sidkejriwal

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4 months ago

There’s something electric about following sports. Almost like a religion. I mean this is better than religion. For once everyone’s ready to forget all about your race, class, caste, ethnicity, heritage, profession or any such determinant, only for the passion for their team. Yesterday, New York City was Orange and Blue. Every New Yorker was on the street, celebrating with different degree of wildness. I’ve never seen anything like this before. I dont think I ever will.

#knicks #newyork #newyorkcity #knicksnation #newyorkknicks taken in New York City by @sidkejriwal

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4 months ago

Barsati – a poor man’s penthouse – was objectively a bad idea. In a new city, it was a rooftop box that collected Delhi’s dust and gave me a premium, unfiltered view of its pollution. But I had a tendency of allowing romance to prevail over sense. And nothing represented artistic freedom more than a barsati. Atop the ultimate symbols of sprawling wealth, a barsati stood as a tiny digression of dissent. A pitstop before success.

My friends thought I was mad.

But here’s what they didn’t get — it sat right under the belly of every flight descending into IGI. And there’s something quietly powerful about watching planes from a terrace with a hot cup of tea, knowing the world is large and you are small and none of this is permanent.
One day I stopped watching.

I got on one. And went far away from the dust.

The sky was closer than I thought.

#delhi #nyc #airplanes #avgeek #planespotting taken in Delhi, India by @sidkejriwal

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5 months ago

I still remember fretting over my decision of visiting Iceland two years ago. It was just a week for a country that could take, if not years, a few months to fully understand. But I decided to go for it anyway. Just to get a glimpse of the Land of Fire & Ice. A peak into the land only to come back later with more time and more passion to experience.

The sights I saw were enough to make me hunt for a story that takes me back to Iceland, this time for a bit longer.

#iceland #fireandice #icelandexplored #reykjavík #nyc taken in Iceland by @sidkejriwal

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5 months ago

Idk what I’ve done to deserve the most beautiful friends in the world.

THANK YOU @22.amanda_ for hyping me up for an entire week, @dagmar.rothschild @lswierzawska for baking this stunning cake, @wongpeiting for documenting memories like a ninja and to all those who turned up to make my day brighter.

#birthday #newyorkcity #friendship #columbia #columbiauniversity taken in New York City by @sidkejriwal

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6 months ago

Looking back there are no regrets, only madness! I am who am because of my people. Can’t wait to fill more pages together.
#india #travel #friends #life #rich taken in India by @sidkejriwal

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6 months ago

When both your hometown and your adopted city are a major flex. One of those days when I miss home a bit more than usual.

Sapno ki udaan mai aksar apne chhooth jaate hai. :(

#jaipur #rajasthan #india #nyc #home taken in Jaipur, Rajasthan by @sidkejriwal

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6 months ago

Visual postcards from our under-production short documentary about finding love in New York City. ♥️
Accompanied by the lovely @crystalhu_37

#love #newyorkcity #nyc #newyork #modernlove taken in New York City by @sidkejriwal

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7 months ago

when I was a kid, I wanted to fly off somewhere far away. First to escape the chaos, later to chase success. The pursuit of freedom has led me to many cities, then countries. The definition of home changed so often, that the transit began feeling like home. Movement, like in a speeding train as the dry wind slaps in the face, like in a bus gazing endlessly at the motion blur of time, like in an airplane cutting across clouds mercilessly; the movement made me dream higher and higher. Sometimes even punishing my poor feet for the audacity of the heart’s ambition, pushing boundaries, always to reach somewhere. The physicality of the movement somehow always translated into rise in the altitude of my flight.

A year ago I saw this view in an A3 color cutout cheaply pasted on the whitewashed wall of my delhi barsati.

I’m still getting used to living in it.

Khulli aankhon ko sapna dekhne ki aadat daal do, wo kismat ko khud samjha dengi.

#newyork #newyorkcity #unitedstatesofamerica #dream #indiansinusa taken in New York City by @sidkejriwal

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8 months ago