‘My reward for waiting in the cold was this painting-like view of the ghat’: Priya Ojha’s best phone picture

When Priya Ojha first arrived at Yamuna Ghat in New Delhi, late in December 2021, she was disappointed. She had left her home at 5am especially to capture shots of one of the most sacred rivers in India, but had arrived in dense fog and almost complete silence.

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“Visibility was so low that all I could do was wait in the cold,” Ojha recalls. “Around 8am, I heard a voice call out, ‘Dhoop aa gayi’ – the sunrays have come out. They were right. This place that had looked like a graveyard slowly became more lively as local priests started their daily routines and boat riders took out their craft for business.”

Ojha recalls that a young boy appeared at her side and said, “Help me make my first ride and I will show you the ghat.” She agreed: “And that’s how I came across this scene.

“The two boats layered between the foreground and the background give a sense of depth, which makes the photo feel more lively,” she adds. “I liked that I captured not just this majestic place and the hundreds of swirling seagulls, but people just like me who had come to experience its beauty, too.”

When she reflects on the photograph now, Ojha is reminded of her patience that morning. “My reward was this painting-like picture of the ghat,” she says. “Just what I had set out for.”