Each year during the Bonalu festivities that coincide with the monsoon in Hyderabad, an ordinary man transforms into Potharaju, a folk deity and soothsayer, his face painted in vivid strokes of turmeric and vermillion. Vedika Bonakurthy’s photograph captures these Potharajus in the moments before the Bonalu procession, documenting their act of becoming. Titled ‘Body Before The Spirit’, the image distills the essence of local culture.
This photograph, along with several others, forms part of an exhibition curated to mark World Photography Day. Opening on August 19 at the State Art Gallery in Madhapur, the show features landscapes, architecture, street photography, and portraits by Hyderabad-based photographers. It is organised by the Hyderabad Centre for Photography in association with the Telangana Government, Telangana Tourism, the State Gallery of Art, and the Indian Photo Festival.
