PHOTO ESSAY WINNERS | 14TH ANNUAL MPA

1st PLACE WINNER

PHOTO ESSAY WINNERS | 14TH ANNUAL MPA

Winter Migration by Alessandra Manzotti

Every year during the months of February and March about 200 nomadic eagle hunting families embark on a treacherous 5 days, 90 miles long winter migration to their spring camp in the remote reaches of the Altai Mountains of Western Mongolia.

They make the trek in the hopes of finding better pastures for their prized livestock. Winters here are unforgiving and temperatures can plummet to -45c.

Children, elderly and sick animals make the journey by truck but the herd must walk. The winter migration is a test of endurance for both humans and animals alike.

For 5 days there is no food and often animals perish or need to be rescued. Bactrian camels and dogs are an essential part of the migration as they help carry supplies and herd the livestock.

 

2nd PLACE WINNER

Echoes of Faith by Joy Saha

Hundreds of Hindu devotees gather in front of Shri Shri Loknath Brahmachari Ashram temple for the Rakher Upobash, a religious fasting festival called – Rakher Upobash in Narayanganj, Bangladesh. Sitting in front of candle lights (locally named Prodip), they fast and pray in earnest to the gods for their favors during the ritual.

Worshippers keep fast from morning for this prayer and it means the last meal they had was yesterdays dinner.

In the afternoon, they start gathering at the temple premises to secure a place for prayer inside the temple. As the sun goes down, devotees sit faithfully surrounding the temple, and light up their Prodips (earthen lamps) and Dhunachi (an intense incense burner used to create smoke for traditional rituals). With ululation and chant, the prayer starts and it continues for almost 2 hours.

Ululation is a pious sound made by Hindu Bengali women on every auspicious occasion.

The temple premises become alive when thousands of diyas are burnt together. Light from thousands of lamps, intense smoke from Dhunachi, the high peach rhythm of chanting, and devotees absorbed in prayers create a breath-taking ambiance. At last, devotees break their fast taking the Prashad from the temple and cook their dinner in the temple.

 

3rd PLACE WINNER

The Dani Tribe by Joseph Radhik

These are a series of portraits of the Dani Tribe in Papua, Indonesia. Their customs including chopped fingers & penis gourds are what are usually portrayed, but I found their faces to be their most striking feature.