357. Food for Life
Photo By: Sangharsha
Post Date: 1st May, 2009
Description: Dabal Bahadur Malla is one of the 14-15 Mugalis who have travelled the distance of 5 days to reach Talcha in Rara VDC from their village Dhaina VDC to fetch rice to feed their family. As a part of the “Food for Work” program run by WFP, they contribute their labor (one person from a family) in road construction in the Mugu-Jumla section, where they get 4 kgs of rice for one day’s work. Almost all the VDC is turning up to receive the rice, with a long caravan of goats and mules; some combining as much as 1200 goats. On their trip to Mugu, they bring millet, bean seeds, buckwheat to sell them on the way.
Nepal is an agricultural country and here, in Mugu, people are producing(virtually) by contributing nation in infrastructure development and it will still take ( people make such speculations) next 15-20 yrs to regulate that road properly.
They have 120 goats with them which are used to carry the small packages of rice (seen in the background).
Never heard ‘goats’ used as a transportation means before. Just read the whole story – reminded me of Eric’s Caravan. Its relative that we pursue an enjoyable trip up to Rara for the pleasure of life and they pursue painstaking travel down to Rara for the compulsion of life.
Sangharsha! Nice picture and good description. I have met many photographers from abroad who have quoted our country as ‘Mecca’ for landscape, people and culture photography. And this picture is one good example to support their quotation. Still there are many unheard stories of people and places of Nepal that we photographers can reveal and help other to be acquainted with ‘Life in Nepal’.
Some suggestion from photographic perspective: Subject ‘ Dabal Bahadur Malla’ is in dead center, which gave it a stereotype feel. ‘Rule of thirds’ would have been better option. And I would have preferred little wider view so that it includes some detail of Dabal’s belongings (bring millet, bean seeds, buckwheat etc.) and at the same time help viewers to have glimpse of Mugu landscape of in the background.
Keep clicking!!
Thanks Lenscape, yantra.
we call them Mugali (in Nepali); & yes, WFP is World Food Program.
For a slightly more detail, http://sangharsha.blogspot.com/2009/04/food-for-life.html
Great, Sangharsha!
Would love to see more of ‘Nepali Stories’ featured in Life In Nepal.
Sangharsha!!
Nice content overall. Description is so well knitted, and loved to know about the details. Nice capture!!
The smile worth millions!! This picture also depicts what Contentment is!!
Mugulese or Mugalis (U or A)?? – Just a query.
WFP means World Food Program, I guess!!
Keep posting!!