For Israeli photographer Mayaan Gutgold, who has been living in India for the past seven years, capturing on lens the country's people and especially its villages has become more than just a hobby.
"India is an incredible place. I have been living here for past seven years and am fascinated by the simplicity of the people here. My photography is not just clicking their faces, but trying to shoot their expression and how they feel and how they react," says Maayan.
Gutgold who lives here with her family has participated in India's only expatriate photo competition, the 17th Annual Beautiful India Photo Competition, organised by Global Adjustments in Chennai last month and won a third prize in the category "Into India".
The award winning picture titled "Blessing" showcases a family who left India a year ago. Before they left, Mayaan says she visited them at home in a south Delhi village.
"I took a photograph of an old woman blessing a young one. There was a nice chemistry between the two. I found the picture real, authentic and the blessing was very natural," says Gutgold.
Gutgold has divided her photographs into categories such as 'Life', 'Family', 'Maternity', 'Children' and 'Culture'.
"When I entered a village I was surprised to see how organised they kept it. The villagers respect their place, so they keep it clean. India needs to be much more cleaner and people should have to respect their place much more," says Gutgold.
The photographer says she never preplans her pictures and relies on the moment.
"I live in the moments. I have the camera with me. I take time to see around them. If I am going to a festival I try to be friendly with people, I speak to them, sometimes some people ask me not to take their picture. I respect that. The major thing is to respect each other," she said.
