Visitors to Delhi during the ongoing Commonwealth Games can feast their eyes on rare visuals, which present an insight into the life and times of yesteryear India, captured by one of the country’s first woman photojournalist — Homai Vyarawalla.

A day in the life of Indian firemen during wartime, right from receiving a distress call, sliding down poles into an appliance room, to picking up uniforms neatly arranged in rows, to dousing the fire — the story of the fireman is told through a series of captioned photographs that appeared in the Illustrated Weekly of India in the 1940s.

The photographs are from Vyarawalla’s vast personal collection of original photographs and negatives being displayed at the National Gallery of Modern Art (NGMA) as part of her retrospective, which began August 27 and will continue till October 31.

Images of feisty young women dressed in saris, with the then long sleeved blouses can be seen participating in air raid protection mock drills organised to train the public during World War II.

The wide tree-lined streets in Delhi’s Connaught Place, a striking aerial view of Rajpath on India’s first Independence Day, a group of gleeful women going to vote during the country’s first general election — Vyarawla’s pictures capture the social and political life of a nation in transition.

"The collection of about 200 images is interesting because it showcases the entire ethos of the country. It has social, anthropological and historical value. We are celebrating the life of an artist as well as acquainting modern viewers with the visual culture of the past," says Rajeev Lochan, director, NGMA.

Vyarawla photographed key events that would have a decisive impact on the Indian history, that included a meeting where leaders voted for the June 3 plan for India’s Partition. She also captured the first flag hoisting ceremony at Red Fort on August 15, 1947, the departure of Lord Mountbatten from India and the funerals of Mahatma Gandhi, Jawaharlal Nehru and Lal Bahadur Shastri.

Curated by Sabeena Gadihoke, who has authored the biography Camera Chronicles of Homai Vyarawala, the photographs that are now on permanent loan to the Alkazi foundation for the Arts, also feature everyday life in 1940s Mumbai and images of leisure in Delhi in the 1950s and the 1960s, extensively chronicling the lives of ordinary people.

Born in 1913 to a Parsi famliy, Homai Vyarawalla, who grew up in Mumbai moved to Delhi in 1942, where she photographed events leading to Independence. She was an employee of the British Information Services at that time.

Vyarawalla shot her first photo in 1938 — a picnic party of women from the Women’s Club in Mumbai. Her first published pictures were in the Bombay Chronicle, which paid her one rupee for every photograph.

An obtrusive photographer, who liked to capture her subjects in their natural poses, Vyarawalla recollects the visit of Queen Elizabeth.

"The Queen and the Duke were first introduced to the press at Rashtrapati Bhawan. It was winter and I was wearing a Peshawari salwar, jutis and black coat. Perhaps it was my imagination or I was dressed differently from others, but she kept turning to look at me."

Another time during the visit of American President Dwight D. Eisenhower, Vyarawalla recounts her difficulty in getting his photo at the Ram lila grounds in Delhi in 1959.

"Eisenhower’s security would barricade him with a double chain of men walking shoulder to shoulder." She, however, managed to get his shot.

Meanwhile, the ongoing retrospective also includes original silver gelatin prints, many printed by the photographer herself. Also on display are old cameras, photographic equipment and other memorabilia. — PTI

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