Tough Deal

Posted by Shutterbug (Chennai, India) on 24 September 2007 in People & Portrait.

This chap had lost his thatched house a week after the tsunami, in Sirgazhi coastal village, Nagapattinam district in Tamil Nadu.
But it was not so much that, as the abject poverty that he has obviously been living with for years that held me.

An inadequate word of thanks for everyone who is kind enough to see my pics and leave comments here! Keep them coming, is all I can say!

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Comments (17)

arvind from India

truly symbolic!

25 Sep 2007 3:38pm

Rebecca from Leicester, United Kingdom

This is such a deeply moving capture, dear sir....The perspective and colour are amazing, but more than that, I am moved to tears. Thank you so much for sharing this today.

25 Sep 2007 3:58pm

HorseRotorVator from Newton, United States

Thank you for sharing...this shot says more than words can express.

25 Sep 2007 7:11pm

stijn from brugge, Belgium

a nice photo ... he has that strange smile that i find so funny

25 Sep 2007 8:12pm

Walt from Scarborough, Canada

Very expressive - makes me feel blessed is all I can say...

26 Sep 2007 12:52am

jen from Alpharetta, United States

So moving and emotional

26 Sep 2007 1:26am

Wolfgang Prigge from Canada

Striking picture and a poignant story!

26 Sep 2007 1:27am

e. from Washington DC, United States

That's really very upsetting. The pose you captured is great, and really expresses a lot of his grief. I really especially like the tree in the background, because it's gnarled bareness adds to the bleakness of it all.

26 Sep 2007 6:16am

Bron from Canberra, Australia

Thanks for using your camera to remind us of deep human stories Shutterbug.

26 Sep 2007 7:53am

Veerendra from Pune, India

Hi thanks for comment ..
this photo is good .. feels so sad too !

26 Sep 2007 2:28pm

MaryB from Staffordshire, United Kingdom

A deeply moving and though provoking image Shutterbug.

26 Sep 2007 2:51pm

Nick Passantino from Bronx, United States

great portrait.. it really looks like he's been through a lot.

26 Sep 2007 3:15pm

tyan from Singapore, Singapore

thank you very much for sharing my friend. I once discussed with somebody how a photo journalist feels when he has to take pictures of people dying,catastrophes...i read of one journalist who shot himself in the head after he took a picture of an african girl dying of hunger and a vulture was just lurking nearby,waiting for her certain death so he could devour her flesh.I wonder how u felt when u took this photo?I think sometimes nobody but themselves can understand the immense pain of loss of possessions,loved ones and everything else that mattered to them.

26 Sep 2007 4:31pm

Mandy from Johannesburg, South Africa

Really makes one appreciate all we have- thank you so much for sharing this man's struggle with us! :)

26 Sep 2007 6:07pm

Illuci from Hurdegaryp, Netherlands

This portrait lets you feel like a wealthy rich man, I only can wish him all strength and hope he will endure the misery. The tree is very symbolic, I notice you often use symbols and I like it.

26 Sep 2007 7:43pm