The Most Magical Place on Earth

I love Sri Lanka--as a travel destination and a place to hopefully live someday. And I am impossibly infatuated with the look and presence of attractive Sri Lankan men. Anyone familiar with my Sri Lankan Male blog will be well aware of this.

But when I see the images produced by photographer Laurent G. in nearby India, I have to admit that there is an even more magical place on this planet.

Through the lens of a photo-artisan, we get another snapshot on an incredible India.

Now I regret that I may be guilty of cybertheft for posting the photographer's images on my own blog, but I hope it can be viewed more as homage than theft. In addition to a great photo, it is accompanied by interesting commentary, for which I will not re-post but instead provide a link: The Sweet Fragrance.


Illusion or Reality

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Now in my own commentary on the image I'll risk stating one of the obvious attractions, the handsome man--with smooth, glistening skin and perfectly groomed mustache.

Another attraction, however, are the colors and how they are woven together in flesh, fabric and background.

What a wondrous illusion of beauty and perfection.

This is how I would describe many of Laurent G.'s images. They are real images indeed, not paintings and in most instances not even staged.

But I think they might also be described as illusory for the brief moment and miniature glimpse they provide of what is a very real India but one that perhaps only exists through the eye of the camera and in the instantaneous motion of the shutter.

I don't doubt that India is the most magical place on earth, but this image is quite simply perfection.

The less than perfect reality behind the image, I imagine, is the life of a hard-working street peddler of very humble means.

The fabrics which look so beautiful against his deep brown complexion are probably worn and tattered.

The man is most likely burdened under the oppression of the mid-day heat and the bundle he is forced to carry on his head.

Not really perfection, and if beautiful still, it is certainly a reality that many would not aspire to.


Ever So Intoxicating...

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The sweet fragrance that the photographer refers to in his commentary is certainly as real as the roses which produce them. But perhaps less sweet is the sweat of the man's perspiration, although mixed with the scent of the rose could well be intoxicating in a not unpleasant way (something the photographer, in fact, alludes to).

Artistic Rendering:

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Bangladesh

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Somewhere on the net I came across a headline announcing Bangladeshi Men Are Too Sexy. It was out of Malaysia where presumably there are a large number of Bangladeshi laborers. The story went on to report the concern there that the Bangladeshi workers are stealing the hearts of too many a young Malaysian damsel.

Touché! But I can certainly see how such a thing might happen. I don't know whether many Malaysian lads would have eyes as sweet as Masum's (above right) or lips like Tajrul's (immediate right).

Life for me is quite pleasant when I can entertain visitors such as these, two of the watchmen in my building. 32 y/o Masum is a man seasoned in the craft of maintenance, while 17 y/o Tajrul is his aspiring protégé.

Bangladesh is...

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~a country of 150 million people inhabiting a geographically small area of oft flooded land. It is underdeveloped and corruption is rife. But its overflowing population of hard-working young men can be found in other countries across the region, adding to them a pleasant mix of Bangladeshi charm.

I'm charmed!

Laurent G's Male

So much can be said about the photography of Laurent G. It stands out for providing a perspective of male beauty that seems all too rare, while on the other hand a no brainer.

That is to say that the beauty of many young South Asian men is so apparent and easily seen on the streets and other outdoor places of the countries concerned. Yet prudishness in every society, particularly their own, keeps this treasure if not hidden, then unacknowledged.

A casual observer walking the streets or through the villages of Sri Lanka, India, Bangladesh and other South Asian countries will often be drawn by the attractive image of a young man or worker performing some manual or service oriented task, bathing at a river or just passing by.

I am sure this would have been as much the case 100 years ago as it is today.

But where are the photo collections in books or online to display such images when the traveller, visitor or local residents themselves are emboldened enough to snap a photo? Laurent G., thankfully, is one to fill in this gap for us and he does so with both photographic and artistic expertise.

An unselfconscious display of youth and masculinity.
Other samples of Laurent G. photography are featured in Sri Lankan Male posts: If You Were Frame-by-Frame Favorite of Laurent G.

Attention:

This blog is under-development and is a supplement to Sri Lankan Male, where dozens of posts featuring Sri Lankan men and other south Asians are already on display.

For further information about this blog contact the author: BD at upandhi@gmail.com.


Next Post:

Young Indian Wrestlers

takes your breath away