Friday, March 9, 2007

Olivia Arthur: The Ramnamis

Image Copyright Olivia Arthur

After a degree in Mathematics from Oxford and a diploma in photojournalism from the London College of Printing, Olivia worked in India for two years, freelancing for British publications, including The Observer Magazine, The Independent Magazine, and The Telegraph Magazine.

I was very interested in her brilliant gallery In The Name of God, which documents the Ramnamis in central India. These are members of the untouchable caste, who are prohibited from entering any temple with any Hindu. They tattoo the name of God (Ram) on their faces and/or bodies to announce that they have God with them at all times. This angers the upper caste who see this as polluting Ram's name with their 'untouchable' bodies.

I contacted Olivia for more information about the Ramnamis, and she was gracious to give me some guidance.

Olivia Arthur's In The Name of God

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