TrainDiaries - Daily Life stories of Mumbai's iconic local trains

Train Diaries started as a personal project for her, but very soon it came to define who she was. As viewers we didn't just see the world around her, but also the world within. The starkness of the pictures touched us all and so we connected with her, without even knowing her - such is the power of photography. But that changes today as we get into an intimate tête-à-tête (well, not technically) with Mumbai's very own Anushree. Read on to know more about this young lady and her train project:)

The Saree of a an old lady flies due to the wind in the train

Yes we can't keep hands off each other in the ladies compartment :)

So, who is Anushree?
Anushree is still trying to find herself, looking for answers and while on this quest she tries to find joy in small things.

I am a photojournalist with a news agency Indus Images which is based in Mumbai.

I have been in Mumbai all my life. My childhood was sweet.  I come from a middle class family so we have had to change house more than twice in Mumbai itself because of which I have a lot of friends. Some of them I remember vividly . My best memory is of coming from school, finishing little homework and then going out to play. I miss my childhood, now I realize back then life was so simple.  Competition didn’t matter much and the only people we would want to impress were our parents .

Any specific inspirations?
I am an engineering graduate. I was working in a software company . Here I met a friend who inspired me to do what I am doing right now. We were sitting in middle of café having conversation what would one want to study or pursue further. I was hoping he would say that he would try for MS or MBA like most of our friends did but he said he wants to be a director. I was stumped. Here I was sitting and wondering that life after engineering is either MS or MBA and marriage and the cycle repeats but this person made me realize that if we have dreams and ambitions we should take the leap and live fate to decide the rest.

Tell me about your connection now with photography...
Photography has become a part of me so much that I use it as a language, to echo my voice, my thoughts, my dreams. It is a part of a reality that I want to freeze and nurture and cherish. A picture may have many meanings. A picture’s meaning can change with time. Its relevance also can change with  time.

Proclaiming your love and scribbling on the walls of the Mumbai local train compartments.

A lady touches her phone to her head while she prays in the ladies compartment of the Mumbai local train.

What today is a memory for me  tomorrow it is history. I want to be a part of this. Creating this history, helping bring change through my pictures, make people laugh, cry and evoke the same emotions or maybe different that went through me while taking a picture.  It is this feeling, the rush, the adrenaline that inspires me to photograph.

What is #traindiaries?
Any city is defined by its people. And so Is Mumbai. I think a lot of people relate to the pictures from my story #traindiaries because they see a bit of themselves in these pictures. I click these pictures because they remind me of a memory of my past or because it is a great moment which I would want to cherish in the future. My story, #traindiaries, just happened. I didnt plan it. I always wanted to maintain a book of my travel. Lets say this was the sixties and I had a polaroid camera then I would be having a diary and clicking pictures everyday and pasting it in them. This is what is #traindiaries except that is a virtual one on instagram. There is no start or an end because this is a journey that I am documenting, mine and along with other women who travel in this ladies compartment and who regard this as one big family.

And today in the ladies compartment of the Mumbai local train I found a Leopard

Working late in the night...

Untitled

Tell us about your city Mumbai...
Mumbai is chaos.But within this chaos people find peace. There is hope, faith, ambition, rejection, love, hatred  and all such emotion that  I associate Mumbai with. But in Mumbai I have realized whoever you maybe it welcomes you with open arms. For me Mumbai is Home.

And your love life?
Realationship? No time for it. :)

And finally, what is your dream Anushree?
Professionally I have many dreams. But the most important one for me is to make my parents and sister proud.

Selfie!

A woman holding a string of prayer beads  is seen praying in the ladies compartment of the Mumbai local train.

Connect with Anushree
Twitter