The Nepali Memory Project by photo.circle

June 12, 2011

photo.circle is a website, ‘a platform for emerging and professional photographers in Nepal, that creates opportunities for learning and skill development and creates space for photographers to exhibit, publish and market their work. photo.circle offers workshops with local and visiting resource persons for photographers of various skill levels including professionals, amateurs as well as beginners at the school and college levels.’

You have the opportunity to be part of their most recent project; The Nepali Memory project. It’s simple, with aims to dig up, conceptualize and archive old photographs from family albums and collections to allow them to represent us as people, with an interesting and diverse past. Please contribute to this project by sending photographs to archives@photocircle.com.np

This photo was taken around 1927-1928 AD during the puja ceremony of Maskey clan from Ason tole. The picture was taken on the bank of Bagmati river near Guheswori temple. My grandfather Narendra Lal Maskey (2nd row from bottom, first from right) was just a toddler – around two years old when this photo was taken. He is now 86 years old. Except him, all his relatives from this picuture are already deceased. The lady, next to him was his mother. My grandfathers’ only sister (bottom row first from left) and his elder brother were also in the picture. This picture portrays presence of male, female and children members of the Maskey clan and their relatives citing the important event. However, it is not known that who took this photo. When this picture was taken, Rana clan were still in the power in Nepal and our country was not yet opened to outside world. In the photos, we can see the unique hairstyle of the ladies of that time. They seemed to be wearing sari which was 9 metres long compared to the present day sari which is 5 metres long. Likewise, children especially girls also seem to be wearing lots of traditional jewellery such as tikh, nypusikha and big kallis. Similarly, bhadgaunle topi seems to be much in vogue these days. The other unique characteristic of this picture is presence of bicycle, which might be really a status symbol during that period. Likewise, some passer boys or outsiders beside the members of the family were seen on the top of the photo. Contributor: Kanchan Joshi

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