Anuradha Konwar
21 years of existence has made Anuradha realise that she was born to ‘create’. She is taking baby steps towards a form of journalism, which is more than just peddling news. Enquiring into the co-dependency between the photographer and the photographed fascinates her. She strongly believes that the quality of empathy must exist between a photographer and her subjects. Studying at St Anthony's College Shillong has provided Anuradha with many opportunities to test herself and push boundaries while working with issues that influence society and herself as a human being.
This picture was taken while Janaobi Duarah (38) was preparing her special pork sticks as she sang O bohag’r bota to welcome the Assamese new year (Rongali Bihu) 2020.
During Bihu, I’d gone to a nearby village to deliver sanitizers and masks and there I met with Janaobi, who graciously invited us for lunch. When I asked her how she’s dealing with the lockdown, she replied, "I'm an unpaid worker (laughs). Lockdown or no lockdown, I’ve to wake up at 4 am every day. Before this, my house used to be free by 10 am as my husband left for work and my three children left for school. Now, the house feels too crowded and at times I go out for evening walks to be on my own. Not that I don't love them but over the years I’ve gotten used to solitude. I need some personal time to function properly."
Women of the house are hardly ever acknowledged for the services they provide, especially in the kitchen which is one of the most overlooked section of a house until hunger strikes. Almost all women function with clockwork mechanism to keep the house running day in and day out, all without any earned income, let alone recognition.