Please, won’t you smile? (Part 2 of 3)
Believe it or not, this strange occurrence where women refused to smile happened on a frequent basis during my travels in Rajasthan, India. This was not only challenging photographically, but it also stirred an intense curiosity. Why weren’t these women comfortable smiling for the camera?
Here is another example of this scenario. I paid a hefty $200 USD for a daylong jeep safari through some of India’s most remote desert villages. This was an exorbitant price to pay, but it took me to some very untouched places. As we entered one of the remote villages, I was immediately drawn to this young girl’s face. Like my experience with the mother in Part 1, I could not get her to relax for the camera (refer to photo 1).
After clearly not having any success on my own, I went to my tour guide, Fifu, and asked him if he could help lighten the mood. When I raised my camera, he said something humorous in Hindi… probably something related to me 
Everybody started laughing and I had a brief moment to photograph her charming and joyful smile (refer to photo 2).
Although I was thrilled to have photographed this girl’s natural expression, I still didn’t understand why this was a challenge in the first place. The answer came to me on the same jeep safari when I explored another remote village. Stay tuned for the third and final entry to this series. I’m sure you will find the answer rather intriguing. Hint: consider the consequences of an extremely patriarchal society.
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