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street corner with an auto-rickshaw and pedestrians
street corner with an auto-rickshaw and pedestrians

Shikhar Bafna

I was initially drawn to the visual harmony in the background: a woman in black-and-white walking her dog, their outfits matching with a deliberate aesthetic and symmetry. But the street has a way of interrupting. In the foreground, an auto-rickshaw driver had dropped his pants, re-tucking his shirt. A gesture of professional pride performed with total indifference to the public eye. While one half of the street is conscious of how they are seen, the other is simply existing in the thick of a long workday. It also got me questioning that "decency" is often a matter of perspective; for the driver, he wasn't exposing himself, he was simply preparing for his next fare.

March 14, 2026
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