Shylock of Fatehpur Sikri, a photo from Uttar Pradesh, North

Photographer's Note

If one plans to visit Fatehpur Sikri, it is unlikely that she/he will give the Tomb or Dargah of Salim Chisti a miss. Shaikh Salim Chisti, a descendant of the famous Khwaja Moinuddin Chisti, was a renowned Sufi Saint belonging to the Chisti Order (whose tomb lies in the town of Ajmer in Rajasthan). Salim Chisti was greatly venerated by Emperor Akbar. According to the popular legend, since Akbar was without an heir for a long time, he made a pilgrimage to the renowned Sufi saint, Sheik Salim Chisti, to seek his blessings. When a son -- later to be known as Jahangir -- was born to him, Akbar named him after the saint as a mark of his gratitude and built the new capital to mark his birth.

The tomb was initially made of red sandstone. But the tomb as it stands today sports a marble façade which was a part of the subsequent refurbishment. The tombstone that lies within is shrouded by a cloth and lies beneath a canopy of ebony, mother of pearl and brass. The mausoleum or Dargah tomb is square shaped and is encircled by a corridor graced with lattice marble screens. The exquisite craftsmanship is evident in the intricate designs of the screens in the Tomb in Fatehpur Sikri. The screens are interconnected by a series of heavily embellished marble pillars with branching brackets. The tomb has a low dome and protruding overhangs that jut out like decorative canopy.

The Tomb of Salim Chisti is visited by thousands of visitors of all religions alike seeking blessing of the revered saint & for fulfillment of their wishes.

The atmosphere around the tomb is of humbleness, reverie & peace. It’s would be the last place where one can expect a money lender to be operating in full swing....But this is India & here’s my subject - the money lender, busy counting his cash, in front of the marvelous marble jali screens. Ironical?...Yes! But I thought it was a good photo-opportunity!!

Action continues here

abmdsudi, holmertz, Longroute, pierrefonds, lacroux, patdeph, josepmarin, ciakgiak, danos, bukitgolfb301, ManuMay, subhendu_bagchi, kordinator, Waylim has marked this note useful

Critiques | Translate

yquem46 (32247) 2010-09-29 1:09

Bonjour Angshu
I was there 10 days ago and the place was totally empty. We were alone
You were lucky here to have this man to add a human element in your compo
Superb light to enlighten the various stone embroideries of the openings
A gorgeous work from the craftsmen and from you
have a nice day
Best regards
Patrick

jasmis (57596) 2010-09-29 2:42

Fine composition - excellent proportion of the screen. And fine situation shown.
Regards my dear friend.

abmdsudi (26215) 2010-09-29 6:54

Namste Angshu
My compliment to this gorgeous shot and the useful notes about this dargah and how you relate the subject to it interestingly. Lovely architecture with lots of content to look at such a delicate patterns. I like the way you framed the busy shylock between the two 'arch' frames and above all his fig creates good contrast to the wholes scene. A great photo work, top notch quality again, TFS
Warm rgds

P.S; I visited the Chisti Dargah when I was in Ajmer abt 3 yrs ago, but did not have a chance to enter due to heavy crowds in the thousands that time and the security was also very tight.

John_F_Kennedy (41368) 2010-09-29 7:19

Hello Angshuman,
This is a very fine picture with a special mood. The POV is very nice.best wishes,
Achim

Longroute (19390) 2010-09-29 9:06

You have a good eye for the graphic elements of this fascinating architecture and you framed them well: the two windows have a ratio about 1/3. Lucky you found the man sitting just in the right position! I like the light very much here: not too strong not too dim, which outlines the lovely patterns of these marble jali screens.
Yes, this is India, sacred and profane mingled together... (:-)
A smart and essential composition.
Well done,
Donato

pauloog (11735) 2010-09-29 10:26

Hello angshu,
A good combination of the marvellously carved architecture and the man busy with the serious business of counting money but also bringing depth and scale.
Regards,
Paul

tusharkmandal (3117) 2010-09-29 11:31

Hi Angshu,

A beautiful shot my friend. Your presentation and crop is superbly done without disturbing the geometry and patterns of the architecture. The man sitting really adds very much to the composition.

Have a nice time
Tushar

batalay (32858) 2010-09-29 12:54

Hello Mr. B,

This is a beautifully conceived shot, celebrating the varied mathematical mosaics of the Tomb of Dargah of Salim Chisti, as sharp as obsidian glass. I can see variations on the hexagon, octagon and decagon, along with several that have no names. The worshiper sitting in sentinel appears to be engrossed in pious thought, and happily not texting on his mobile phone.

Warm regards,

Bulent

pierrefonds (48335) 2010-09-29 14:31

Hi Angshuman,

The presence of the persin has an effect of scale. The point of view is allowing me to distinguish the details and colors of the lattice marble screens. The afternoon light has a good effect on the colors. have a nice day.

Pierre

Graal (88852) 2010-09-29 23:01

Hi Angshuman,
amazing windows, nice pattern and construction. good photojob. An interesting informations.
Have a nice day.
Aleksander

lacroux (4562) 2010-09-30 0:10

Hello Angshu
An example of human greed photographed in a setting of sublime beauty.
You say it is India! I would say is the man.
Good day.
Regards.

Bluejeans (64227) 2010-09-30 5:45

Ola Angshuman ,
Fantástica a textura das janelas de fundo que belo trabalho de arte , muito bonito o efeito visual , gostei de ver o homem sentado a ler , bons detalhes, parabéns!!
Um abraço Gonçalo

patdeph (35738) 2010-09-30 9:30

namasté Angshuman
this is exactly what I like,a human presence and a superb detail of architecture!And this is here very well done,perfectly framed,with nice light and colors!
REgards
PAscale

josepmarin (55023) 2010-09-30 10:58

Namaste, my friend Angshuman,
You have centred your composition on this lender counting his money, but your framing offers us also the great beauty of these marble screens, which have a beautiful graphism.
The combination of both elements gives a photographic very interesting result.
A beautiful work, with a great note, as usual.
Best wishes,
Josep

Fis2 (73084) 2010-09-30 12:50

Witaj Angshu!
Wondeful windows :)
Good frame and colors.
I like composition.
The person add savor of photo.
Well done.
Regards
Krzysztof

pajaran (36190) 2010-09-30 12:55

Pozdrav.
Odlican tekst ...
Ljudi odlaze, ostaju velika dela iza njih, mnogo lepo mesto i prelepi prozori sa detaljima.
Usamljeni covek dao je car snimku a vi lepu fotografiju, moje cestitke na dobrom radu.
Sve najbolje.
Paja.

Google.

Hello.
Excellent text ...
People go, remain a big part behind them, very nice place and beautiful windows with details.
A lonely man gave the car shot a nice photo of you, my congratulations on the good work.
All the best.
paja.

ciakgiak (30329) 2010-10-01 12:47

Hello dear Angshuman,
this is a lovely and image, accompanied by very interesting notes!
The composition is very elegant and well done, the texture of the tomb is fabulous, the presence of the man is decisive in this case. The quality is superb.
Congratulations, TFS.
Best regards
Giorgio

jafadabret (56497) 2010-10-01 22:58

Bonjour Angshu,
Cette photo est très belle avec le personnage placé devant ces belles ouvertures au graphisme sublime.
Amicalement
Jacques

danos (73960) 2010-10-02 0:38

Hi Angshu,
clever your title to use the fictional character in Shakespeare's 'The Merchant of Venice',for the money lender as he counts out his money.I like the backdrop part of the tomb Fatehpur Sikri,with the each four-cornered panel to has its own design.

Regards,Danos

bukitgolfb301 (30063) 2010-10-02 14:48

Hello my dear Angshuman

Simple but strong message and impresseion you catch and convey to us. Considered nice framework and well mature composition as usual. The serious Islamic man and the background wall are perfectly mixed. The very very exotic atmosohere indeed. So faithful presentation in the detail du to F9.0 is marvelous indeed. This is the best one from you this passed one week. Blessing on your great job and thanks for sharing, have a beatuful Sunday!
Best regards,
Takero

ManuMay (33311) 2010-10-03 8:22

Namaste Angshuman!

For sure this was a very good photo -opportunity!!

Excellent composition and cadrage, great details and graphic play for this amazing windows...A very beautiful one, and to add subject is enhancing contrasts and gives dimmensions sense...

Very good!

Have a nice day...

Manu

samratrayc (438) 2010-10-03 9:05

Hello angshu
beautiful architecture with a beautiful sense of geometry.
wonder if placing the man a bit more to the right wud have yielded better results or not .. just a thought !
Regards
Samrat

subhendu_bagchi (16590) 2010-10-03 11:47

Dear Dada,
excellent framing with the man with the jali. Like the depth and sharpness of the shot. I think the man in your main post is a bit centred. But match well (ironically!) with the subject. Nice work.
Tfs.
Subhendu

kordinator (13411) 2010-10-04 0:39

Hello Angshuman
This is a very fine picture with a special mood.
Amazing windows,nice pattern and construction.
A beautiful shot my friend.
An interesting informations.
Good frame and colors.
Well done.
Regards
Saša

Waylim (22349) 2010-10-11 8:50

Hi Angshu,
I remember the other shot from the inside, here we are looking from the outside, the intricate patterns of the windows are now in reverse. Each square are worthy of its own photographer. The wider pov give us a good impression of the overall area. The inclusion of the person adds a human element to it and gives a sense of scale and perspective. Technically all is really good as always. Thanks
Way