https://roopagogineni.com Roopa Gogineni Tue, 07 Apr 2026 12:48:48 +0000 https://roopagogineni.com en https://roopagogineni.com/HOME-1 Sun, 17 Sep 2017 21:48:02 +0000 Roopa Gogineni https://roopagogineni.com/HOME-1 <img width="3600" height="2025" width_o="3600" height_o="2025" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/cae4b6f908c95458b857720b4ba177c209ade3c1977578027593d9d812470e01/Suddenly-TV-STILL-WEBSITE.jpg" data-mid="179162259" border="0" data-scale="97" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/cae4b6f908c95458b857720b4ba177c209ade3c1977578027593d9d812470e01/Suddenly-TV-STILL-WEBSITE.jpg" /> <img width="1200" height="800" width_o="1200" height_o="800" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/79004a2b53f5ae1d177b06cb86a696a19cb6ffc0c7833cc009a3c3621d808d4a/Mau-Mau-002.JPG" data-mid="110765155" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/79004a2b53f5ae1d177b06cb86a696a19cb6ffc0c7833cc009a3c3621d808d4a/Mau-Mau-002.JPG" /> <img width="3600" height="2400" width_o="3600" height_o="2400" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/c60332cf53f855552c0c50ec6cd9bd1eb82eb7fdfb8a241623e631f182b717a4/Spanish-Shepherds09.JPG" data-mid="4533531" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/c60332cf53f855552c0c50ec6cd9bd1eb82eb7fdfb8a241623e631f182b717a4/Spanish-Shepherds09.JPG" /> <img width="5640" height="3760" width_o="5640" height_o="3760" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/a12800592605d3943d7bb137bd4586f536cc5b657f42ec1d97acb9b4ff4feee6/NR-Instagram-Gogineni-02.JPG" data-mid="110766300" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/a12800592605d3943d7bb137bd4586f536cc5b657f42ec1d97acb9b4ff4feee6/NR-Instagram-Gogineni-02.JPG" /> <img width="2400" height="1600" width_o="2400" height_o="1600" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/e3a4d976b7e77897d590ec55fbbba74b666ca711959deb4e92b48478a49895f3/Timepass-01.jpg" data-mid="110769765" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/e3a4d976b7e77897d590ec55fbbba74b666ca711959deb4e92b48478a49895f3/Timepass-01.jpg" /> <img width="1200" height="1800" width_o="1200" height_o="1800" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/0457f6153da1d2f75a293da211b18f6dc1c645655de39607c6bafa46b8de5fec/methadone-kenya-021.jpg" data-mid="110808819" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/0457f6153da1d2f75a293da211b18f6dc1c645655de39607c6bafa46b8de5fec/methadone-kenya-021.jpg" /> <img width="1067" height="1600" width_o="1067" height_o="1600" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/1ace1407e09823a9720c2e2da63252c7a5168220866dd64dcd017a6cbff48dbd/NOLARG012.jpg" data-mid="4533610" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/1ace1407e09823a9720c2e2da63252c7a5168220866dd64dcd017a6cbff48dbd/NOLARG012.jpg" /> <img width="1600" height="2400" width_o="1600" height_o="2400" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/2fd83b425353dbad8b00ef721daef605b7da3f29994769460efec3651e120903/Somalia-Cash-028.JPG" data-mid="110765490" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/2fd83b425353dbad8b00ef721daef605b7da3f29994769460efec3651e120903/Somalia-Cash-028.JPG" /> https://roopagogineni.com/ABOUT Fri, 14 May 2021 16:13:26 +0000 Roopa Gogineni https://roopagogineni.com/ABOUT <img width="5670" height="6109" width_o="5670" height_o="6109" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/26012f5c95d883f028e3aee2929283c0e1720f9f17582a9a74c051bfb3e3e8fb/Roopa_Portrait-2-border.jpg" data-mid="108466219" border="0" data-scale="78" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/26012f5c95d883f028e3aee2929283c0e1720f9f17582a9a74c051bfb3e3e8fb/Roopa_Portrait-2-border.jpg" />roopa.gogineni@gmail.com instagram Roopa Gogineni is a Paris-based filmmaker, photographer and curator. For a decade she lived in Nairobi where she developed a collaborative practice, working alongside communities of resistance across the region. Her films, described as intimate and urgent, have premiered at festivals including IDFA, SXSW, Hot Docs and Sheffield Doc/Fest. I AM BISHA, her documentary chronicling a satirical puppet show in rebel-held Sudan, received the Oscar-qualifying Full Frame Award for Best Short and a Rory Peck Award. SUDDENLY TV, her latest short film about magical thinking and revolution, earned the SXSW Special Jury Award and IndieLisboa Short Film Grand Prize. She has directed documentaries for The New York Times, BBC and Al Jazeera and has led projects supported by the Sundance Institute, Doc Society, CatchLight, Points North Institute, Logan Nonfiction, Firelight and Chicken &amp; Egg Pictures. Roopa holds degrees from the University of Pennsylvania and the University of Oxford. For four years she supported the PASTRES research program at The Institute of Development Studies as a visual methods advisor and curator. She has taught at Parsons Paris and lectured at Carnegie Mellon and Sciences Po. Currently, she is the coordinator of Night School, a network of grassroots film clubs for displaced Sudanese communities, and a co-director of Sunduq Al Sudan, a fund supporting mutual aid groups on the frontlines of Sudan’s counterrevolutionary war. awards, fellowships, exhibitions 2023 SXSW Documentary Short Special Jury Award2023 IndieLisboa Short Film Grand Prize2021 Logan Nonfiction Fellowship2021 CatchLight Fellow 2020 Women Photograph Grant Recipient 2018 FRONTLINE/Firelight Investigative Journalism Fellowship2018 Rory Peck Award for News Features 2018 One World Media Short Film Award2018 Full Frame Jury Award for Best Short2017 Firelight Media Short Film Grant 2016 "Over There” Exhibition, Annex Gallery2016 Exhibition at Women Deliver, Copenhagen2015 One World Media Awards Short Film Nominee 2014 RISC Benefit Show, Aperture Gallery2012 Photo Lucida Critical Mass Finalist2012 Ian Parry Scholarship Group Show2012 Lucie Foundation Photo Mentorship Program2012 "The Day I was Destroyed" Exhibition, Annex Gallery2011 "Coal Colony" Exhibition, St. Antony’s College, University of Oxford clients The New York Times | The Washington Post | San Francisco Chronicle | The Guardian | Stern | Capital | Al Jazeera | BBC | TOPIC | Bloomberg | Businessweek | The Sunday Times | The Telegraph | CNN | VICE | Lucky Peach | Eater | NPR | VOA | RFI https://roopagogineni.com/The-Future-of-Aid Tue, 08 Jun 2021 13:53:23 +0000 Roopa Gogineni https://roopagogineni.com/The-Future-of-Aid THE FUTURE OF AID Somali pastoralists have long known cycles of drought and hunger. It was not without precedent when the rains failed in 2016, but then the next two seasons failed as well. They watched entire herds of camels, goats and sheep wither and die. Generations of wealth disappeared within weeks, and hundreds of thousands abandoned their traditional rangelands for IDP camps in urban centers, where a new aid paradigm emerged. Instead of distributing traditional food aid, which floods local markets with agricultural surplus from western countries, humanitarian agencies began sending mobile cash transfers to displaced people so they could spend according to needs. Cash transfers now reach an estimated quarter of Somalia’s population. While&nbsp;transfers&nbsp;do little to address the underlying climate conditions, conflict, and political failings that can lead to famine, they may have the ability to stave off the worst hunger crises, and could be the&nbsp;first step towards universal basic income in Somalia. These photos, taken in a photo booth set up in a camp for displaced people, capture how people use the $60 they are sent every month. <img width="1600" height="2400" width_o="1600" height_o="2400" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/861e9cedebaffe32d0cbe8a1198b164867c54f70510c9a5fcdba6663bbe4581c/Somaliland-Cash-001.JPG" data-mid="110746637" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/861e9cedebaffe32d0cbe8a1198b164867c54f70510c9a5fcdba6663bbe4581c/Somaliland-Cash-001.JPG" /> <img width="1600" height="2400" width_o="1600" height_o="2400" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/2fd83b425353dbad8b00ef721daef605b7da3f29994769460efec3651e120903/Somalia-Cash-028.JPG" data-mid="110743590" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/2fd83b425353dbad8b00ef721daef605b7da3f29994769460efec3651e120903/Somalia-Cash-028.JPG" /> <img width="1600" height="2400" width_o="1600" height_o="2400" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/6b8da64bcb66d2b0e56c793938645739976ae2a96a757498f523c0efe4cbb3a6/Somaliland-Cash-004.JPG" data-mid="110746631" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/6b8da64bcb66d2b0e56c793938645739976ae2a96a757498f523c0efe4cbb3a6/Somaliland-Cash-004.JPG" /> <img width="1600" height="2400" width_o="1600" height_o="2400" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/831111d5433ac59e9bb4555c24ddf3bafa8a556e65cdf9e8816e097cf1b612c6/Somaliland-Cash-007.JPG" data-mid="110746624" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/831111d5433ac59e9bb4555c24ddf3bafa8a556e65cdf9e8816e097cf1b612c6/Somaliland-Cash-007.JPG" /> <img width="1600" height="2400" width_o="1600" height_o="2400" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/09d36385debc4985494687c867ca3e6adcf5318fe700101665bfaf8f8fefb2ab/Somalia-Cash-030.JPG" data-mid="110743617" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/09d36385debc4985494687c867ca3e6adcf5318fe700101665bfaf8f8fefb2ab/Somalia-Cash-030.JPG" /> <img width="1200" height="1800" width_o="1200" height_o="1800" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/40ba77237bdcfc21a2cf392059dc371f694443a6185cc8fe1786092b1f6f4948/Somaliland-Cash-002.JPG" data-mid="110746632" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/40ba77237bdcfc21a2cf392059dc371f694443a6185cc8fe1786092b1f6f4948/Somaliland-Cash-002.JPG" /> <img width="1600" height="2400" width_o="1600" height_o="2400" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/279174e115a283a0e5b922a0ed9ff364a154103f0abdeef9e8a419cdf7f70c33/Somalia-Cash-022.JPG" data-mid="110743602" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/279174e115a283a0e5b922a0ed9ff364a154103f0abdeef9e8a419cdf7f70c33/Somalia-Cash-022.JPG" /> <img width="1600" height="2400" width_o="1600" height_o="2400" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/0c2498e29b8c0e79c5b564351f52baed1e2a9c6a04385f088c84bbd9e52d6290/Somalia-Cash-029.JPG" data-mid="110743588" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/0c2498e29b8c0e79c5b564351f52baed1e2a9c6a04385f088c84bbd9e52d6290/Somalia-Cash-029.JPG" /> <img width="1600" height="2400" width_o="1600" height_o="2400" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/5d1e75106fa39e3b40a680d3e2d3b1cf836cb1b6af3e83ae837c2f6fbcb82fb3/Somaliland-Cash-09.JPG" data-mid="110746622" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/5d1e75106fa39e3b40a680d3e2d3b1cf836cb1b6af3e83ae837c2f6fbcb82fb3/Somaliland-Cash-09.JPG" /> https://roopagogineni.com/Methadone-in-Kenya Tue, 08 Jun 2021 09:49:49 +0000 Roopa Gogineni https://roopagogineni.com/Methadone-in-Kenya KENYA’S MODERN APPROACH TO OPIOID ADDICTION East Africa’s emergence as a major drug smuggling hub has led to an explosion of heroin use in the region. While Kenya’s government has largely failed to crack down on trafficking, its response to addiction has seen success. It is one of the few African countries to implement harm reduction strategies, such as needle exchange or drug replacement therapy, which remain controversial in many parts of the world. I am from West Virginia, which has the highest opioid overdose rate in the US. The patterns I saw in Kenya were achingly familiar. People talked about the nearly instant physical addiction, the lies they told to family, the pawning and stealing, the crippling pain of withdrawal. The same stigmas exist in both places, as does the fight to redefine heroin use as a public health crisis, instead of a criminal problem. These photographs tell the story of recovery in Kenya, that could be the story of recovery anywhere. Photographed for Open Society Foundations. <img width="1200" height="1800" width_o="1200" height_o="1800" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/ab5e7a372f3c79f9cbca527cabb7d66c64b1e4cd70ccc281d2ca76c59d67323d/Methadone-Kenya-42.jpg" data-mid="110718900" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/ab5e7a372f3c79f9cbca527cabb7d66c64b1e4cd70ccc281d2ca76c59d67323d/Methadone-Kenya-42.jpg" /><img width="1800" height="1200" width_o="1800" height_o="1200" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/e1685d32d684c59a0cb90048e6abe42d9eaf46c3a6c225a52724397b41938d46/methadone-kenya-001.jpg" data-mid="110717448" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/e1685d32d684c59a0cb90048e6abe42d9eaf46c3a6c225a52724397b41938d46/methadone-kenya-001.jpg" /><img width="1800" height="1200" width_o="1800" height_o="1200" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/83df631caa8488a68fece0788b1adbffb0b6be446b39b2c65a9ae8d521877748/kenya-addiction007.jpg" data-mid="110717455" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/83df631caa8488a68fece0788b1adbffb0b6be446b39b2c65a9ae8d521877748/kenya-addiction007.jpg" /><img width="1800" height="1200" width_o="1800" height_o="1200" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/18407e435e54ac2f46e74554b36e9624b409f245a40c1617db686c3ebff87ebf/methadone-kenya-003.jpg" data-mid="110717440" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/18407e435e54ac2f46e74554b36e9624b409f245a40c1617db686c3ebff87ebf/methadone-kenya-003.jpg" /><img width="1723" height="1149" width_o="1723" height_o="1149" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/bb311e1ebeaee7252364e2e4d33e839a164e72bff5a061c2fda210e7dbfbf2aa/Methadone-Kenya-132b.jpg" data-mid="110791813" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/bb311e1ebeaee7252364e2e4d33e839a164e72bff5a061c2fda210e7dbfbf2aa/Methadone-Kenya-132b.jpg" /><img width="1800" height="1200" width_o="1800" height_o="1200" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/80c289cc9ce39578d8b12c96b459d28a7b9d7d269f55bbbee1d97295b1215b4b/kenya-addiction002.jpg" data-mid="110717456" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/80c289cc9ce39578d8b12c96b459d28a7b9d7d269f55bbbee1d97295b1215b4b/kenya-addiction002.jpg" /><img width="1800" height="1200" width_o="1800" height_o="1200" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/3d0fce18788a9d61ea33798735f06a52be017c4d44046053fbbf663debcd0566/Methadone-Kenya-77a.jpg" data-mid="110791006" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/3d0fce18788a9d61ea33798735f06a52be017c4d44046053fbbf663debcd0566/Methadone-Kenya-77a.jpg" /><img width="1800" height="1286" width_o="1800" height_o="1286" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/09ad56ea6b81364a5ed7770de4781eacec8c75e5374b046a98a8c14fbef33613/Methadone-Kenya-73.jpg" data-mid="110718899" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/09ad56ea6b81364a5ed7770de4781eacec8c75e5374b046a98a8c14fbef33613/Methadone-Kenya-73.jpg" /><img width="1800" height="1200" width_o="1800" height_o="1200" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/3e1c2609bf1e1692415de2bd0ce6edfe8d9007674fdcf28b78e8dbba0d7efc07/Methadone-Kenya-101.jpg" data-mid="110718897" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/3e1c2609bf1e1692415de2bd0ce6edfe8d9007674fdcf28b78e8dbba0d7efc07/Methadone-Kenya-101.jpg" /><img width="1800" height="1164" width_o="1800" height_o="1164" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/9e2ace09f6e2521c231fc3b88183453feae02d1ce900b5399bfe2b19a0e44bb8/Methadone-Kenya-11.jpg" data-mid="110724543" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/9e2ace09f6e2521c231fc3b88183453feae02d1ce900b5399bfe2b19a0e44bb8/Methadone-Kenya-11.jpg" /><img width="1800" height="1200" width_o="1800" height_o="1200" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/a1a5081d49ca0686a81d92a75f406823312a57199b92e3d06092190d1f8e3c30/Methadone-Kenya-51.jpg" data-mid="110731494" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/a1a5081d49ca0686a81d92a75f406823312a57199b92e3d06092190d1f8e3c30/Methadone-Kenya-51.jpg" /><img width="1800" height="1200" width_o="1800" height_o="1200" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/74b70a70c0c8e938cffaada898c47b0864de66babd6cb032ffb45fd5af6bb564/kenya-addiction006.jpg" data-mid="110717441" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/74b70a70c0c8e938cffaada898c47b0864de66babd6cb032ffb45fd5af6bb564/kenya-addiction006.jpg" /><img width="1800" height="1200" width_o="1800" height_o="1200" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/c58219fa83c26f53b093e66538459291364cac47885cfe6ecb3636c1783175cf/Methadone-Kenya-55.jpg" data-mid="110732428" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/c58219fa83c26f53b093e66538459291364cac47885cfe6ecb3636c1783175cf/Methadone-Kenya-55.jpg" /><img width="1800" height="1200" width_o="1800" height_o="1200" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/92a5355bc5fbff513ca170039aca19bb0c2811c262aafdc7cded202bc3980e08/Methadone-Kenya-50.jpg" data-mid="110730940" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/92a5355bc5fbff513ca170039aca19bb0c2811c262aafdc7cded202bc3980e08/Methadone-Kenya-50.jpg" /><img width="1800" height="1200" width_o="1800" height_o="1200" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/ba5f3fd0eb969c2f47af24796efeb16429ec23fb31d1a1862adce31a11551fc0/Methadone-Kenya-34.jpg" data-mid="110732429" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/ba5f3fd0eb969c2f47af24796efeb16429ec23fb31d1a1862adce31a11551fc0/Methadone-Kenya-34.jpg" /><img width="1800" height="1200" width_o="1800" height_o="1200" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/fa7c75694c6270dd6468349c827931818111fe67bac8d6718cb68472e43d7034/Methadone-Kenya-165.jpg" data-mid="110718896" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/fa7c75694c6270dd6468349c827931818111fe67bac8d6718cb68472e43d7034/Methadone-Kenya-165.jpg" /><img width="1800" height="1200" width_o="1800" height_o="1200" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/561b806735dd398adc18ca6bae005e9af561e8173acb5ea809407851f150b47b/methadone-kenya-009.jpg" data-mid="110717458" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/561b806735dd398adc18ca6bae005e9af561e8173acb5ea809407851f150b47b/methadone-kenya-009.jpg" /><img width="1800" height="1200" width_o="1800" height_o="1200" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/8db916e783868acce1fd61dfcb7ab38664fe4ff63d927ab5a139026f50300af5/Methadone-Kenya-65a.jpg" data-mid="110790885" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/8db916e783868acce1fd61dfcb7ab38664fe4ff63d927ab5a139026f50300af5/Methadone-Kenya-65a.jpg" /><img width="1800" height="1200" width_o="1800" height_o="1200" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/c5817a30f562933707c5731b17e60128f7890c794cea635819787153c98f773c/methadone-kenya-017.jpg" data-mid="110717442" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/c5817a30f562933707c5731b17e60128f7890c794cea635819787153c98f773c/methadone-kenya-017.jpg" /><img width="1200" height="1800" width_o="1200" height_o="1800" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/f79fb942ff0f36d4b271bb60b44c12c4ace3eed6e52661b530b6fee991431a37/methadone-kenya-023.jpg" data-mid="110717457" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/f79fb942ff0f36d4b271bb60b44c12c4ace3eed6e52661b530b6fee991431a37/methadone-kenya-023.jpg" /> https://roopagogineni.com/On-the-Lido Sun, 17 Sep 2017 12:57:56 +0000 Roopa Gogineni https://roopagogineni.com/On-the-Lido <img width="2394" height="3591" width_o="2394" height_o="3591" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/8eb767d77e21c5da1c2edb6498d812f368328e992a418b656326874e142234fb/Lido-1.jpg" data-mid="4693835" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/8eb767d77e21c5da1c2edb6498d812f368328e992a418b656326874e142234fb/Lido-1.jpg" /> <img width="2394" height="3591" width_o="2394" height_o="3591" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/98a296f61d1ef3d70484f3d7d9e3d7256f276d3801185dc3d98cb04b1f5c75a7/Lido-12.jpg" data-mid="4693849" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/98a296f61d1ef3d70484f3d7d9e3d7256f276d3801185dc3d98cb04b1f5c75a7/Lido-12.jpg" /> <img width="2394" height="3591" width_o="2394" height_o="3591" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/9bc8f55f6e2ea88fb2e701df5a996700050d1c3f36758e0f835bae706f4608c1/Lido-5.jpg" data-mid="4693840" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/9bc8f55f6e2ea88fb2e701df5a996700050d1c3f36758e0f835bae706f4608c1/Lido-5.jpg" /> ON THE LIDO Ever since fundamentalist al Shabaab militants were chased from the city by an African Union peacekeeping force in 2011, Lido Beach has become a trope for peace, the stage for Mogadishu’s renaissance. The film Jaws was released in the summer of 1975. It slowly made its way to beach towns around the world, inspiring nightmares and cementing sunbathers to the sand. When Jaws arrived in Mogadishu, Somalia, people might have thought New England was a nearby place, and even that the film was about their own town.Between 1978 and 1987, 30 shark attacks were documented off of Mogadishu’s famous Lido Beach. All but two were fatal. The construction of a new port had broken through coral reefs, allowing bull and tiger sharks to come closer to shore. Most of the fatalities occurred in the summer months of the monsoon, when the salinity of the water attracted even more sharks. During these years, the rains coincided with Ramadan, just as the abattoir up the coast went into high gear, throwing entrails of goats, camels, and cattle into the water. Mogadishu in the 80s was a capital of wide, tree-lined streets, coral-stone homes, and a famous Indian Ocean breeze. Since it was settled around a thousand years ago, it has occupied a space at the crossroads of the Mediterranean, African, Asian, and Arab worlds. The openness of its people, a seaside virtue, is on display at the beaches, especially along popular Lido, in the center of town. Back then, a running club met once a week there. Somalis and expatriates jogged together in shorts, the women unveiled. Stalls lined the street behind Lido where kids would sell sea exotica and ivory. Beach clubs dotted the stretch of sand, where you could have lunch on the deck and watch people wade into the water. The slaughterhouse along the coast that brought the sharks was always busy. Somali society centered on livestock, especially camels; despite having the longest coastline on the continent, Somalis never ate much fish. President Siad Barre, who had come to power in a 1969 military coup, set about establishing fishing cooperatives and declared two days of the week as fish-eating days to stave off food shortages. Eventually, Somalis tired of Barre’s brand of scientific socialism. In practice it came to focus more on elaborate displays of statehood—constructing dozens of monuments and organizing regular parades—than on the actual workings of a state. His style of management stood at odds with the population he sought to control, for which self-reliance and private enterprise has always reigned. Finally, mired in corruption and weakened by several clan-based armed opposition groups, the government fell in 1991. Barre fled the country, and the national army dissolved. So began a war whose end we have not yet seen. Divisive clan politics laid waste to Somali society, and a catastrophic famine accompanied state collapse. More than 300,000 people died of hunger the following year, prompting the first of many botched international interventions. One morning before dawn in December 1992, more than 100 foreign journalists waited on a beach just south of Lido. They watched the dark ocean, looking for signs of a supposedly secret US Marines operation intended to pave the way for food distribution. A CBS news crew caught the arrival of the advance reconnaissance team with night-vision scopes, and they broadcast it live. “This is literally a three-ring circus here on this beach right now,” a captain shouted over to the press corps.For the next 20 years Mogadishu’s beaches were quieter. People stayed indoors, fearful of spontaneous firefights that pockmarked the city’s white coral walls and left rubble in most streets. Breaks in the violence never lasted long. In January 2014, the peace on Lido did not feel like a mirage. Facing the sea, my back to the ruins, I could almost touch it. The throngs of people were thick, and walking through them made me think it would be impossible to feel lonely in this city, if only because of the beach. It was Friday, a holiday, and everyone was here. Photographed with Trevor Snapp for VICE Magazine.&nbsp; https://roopagogineni.com/The-Day-I-was-Destroyed Thu, 21 Sep 2017 11:51:34 +0000 Roopa Gogineni https://roopagogineni.com/The-Day-I-was-Destroyed &nbsp; <img width="1200" height="800" width_o="1200" height_o="800" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/79004a2b53f5ae1d177b06cb86a696a19cb6ffc0c7833cc009a3c3621d808d4a/Mau-Mau-002.JPG" data-mid="5439860" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/79004a2b53f5ae1d177b06cb86a696a19cb6ffc0c7833cc009a3c3621d808d4a/Mau-Mau-002.JPG" /> <img width="1200" height="800" width_o="1200" height_o="800" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/2126341ca04263adaba74e5227adcec2ced790b833ece9e3f2d3f7ba1e4bb7ac/Mau-Mau-001.JPG" data-mid="5439862" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/2126341ca04263adaba74e5227adcec2ced790b833ece9e3f2d3f7ba1e4bb7ac/Mau-Mau-001.JPG" />“Castration Rock,” Lukenya, Kenya THE DAY I WAS DESTROYED Just after christmas in 1957, colonial officers stopped a bus Naomi Kimweli was riding with her family outside Nairobi, Kenya. They separated her from her three children, blindfolded her, beat her, and raped her with a bottle. Nearby they castrated her husband with a pair of pliers. She never saw her children again. That, she tells me, was “the day we were destroyed.” . <img width="1200" height="800" width_o="1200" height_o="800" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/207378396dd091c695598855422169dc5575faa6d6afeb619d1f34d8a96eb9b5/Mau-Mau-003.JPG" data-mid="5439861" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/207378396dd091c695598855422169dc5575faa6d6afeb619d1f34d8a96eb9b5/Mau-Mau-003.JPG" /> <img width="1200" height="800" width_o="1200" height_o="800" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/82d005532457b730287955b2d9462c7d00e0cfa1f85ba03905c102a3829c5a59/Mau-Mau-005.JPG" data-mid="5439859" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/82d005532457b730287955b2d9462c7d00e0cfa1f85ba03905c102a3829c5a59/Mau-Mau-005.JPG" /> <img width="1200" height="800" width_o="1200" height_o="800" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/3bc51d29e3538d45d55b508c6e082d352fd517859770c66c7069d2b1c9b09953/Mau-Mau-004.JPG" data-mid="5439858" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/3bc51d29e3538d45d55b508c6e082d352fd517859770c66c7069d2b1c9b09953/Mau-Mau-004.JPG" /> <img width="1200" height="800" width_o="1200" height_o="800" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/a7b4494f23db4a84cd273f779710bcab7f7996ca95d822ec2f5f5d2cd2121420/Mau-Mau-006.JPG" data-mid="5439855" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/a7b4494f23db4a84cd273f779710bcab7f7996ca95d822ec2f5f5d2cd2121420/Mau-Mau-006.JPG" /> The abuses were part of a systematic campaign of torture to suppress the Mau Mau uprising. Panicked colonialists detained over one million Kenyans, most of whom had nothing to do with the guerrillas. Naomi did not think the men who abused her would ever be held accountable. But in 2005, researchers uncovered a hidden archive of colonial records in London. Naomi’s story, and thousands of others, found new footing.In 2012, Naomi and three other Kenyans traveled from their villages to testify in the British High Court on Fleet Street. They were the face of a historic class action lawsuit seeking both a formal apology and reparations for colonial era abuse. Fifty five years after Naomi’s bus was stopped, the British government settled out of court and agreed to compensate 20,000 Kenyans. <img width="1200" height="800" width_o="1200" height_o="800" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/003749953ece915ff35b3ffda2ed80ddd75af77e40691610b00a5b2790708598/Mau-Mau-009.JPG" data-mid="5439853" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/003749953ece915ff35b3ffda2ed80ddd75af77e40691610b00a5b2790708598/Mau-Mau-009.JPG" /> <img width="1200" height="800" width_o="1200" height_o="800" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/3c9b2d0fc1bc80d8d85d2125f6e9b1bdf5bfda4fea53f97dcf2e7650a7cfcb9e/Mau-Mau-007.JPG" data-mid="5439856" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/3c9b2d0fc1bc80d8d85d2125f6e9b1bdf5bfda4fea53f97dcf2e7650a7cfcb9e/Mau-Mau-007.JPG" /> <img width="1200" height="800" width_o="1200" height_o="800" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/227438879e437316b02c47457c5f0645eccfc39acbd641b4e2403e06376d539f/Mau-Mau-008.JPG" data-mid="5439857" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/227438879e437316b02c47457c5f0645eccfc39acbd641b4e2403e06376d539f/Mau-Mau-008.JPG" /> <img width="1200" height="800" width_o="1200" height_o="800" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/63e966daaac1e1b00de3e7b5473e8346b3a350d02d31e1336e42e04d25ac6d13/Mau-Mau-010.JPG" data-mid="5439854" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/63e966daaac1e1b00de3e7b5473e8346b3a350d02d31e1336e42e04d25ac6d13/Mau-Mau-010.JPG" /> <img width="1200" height="800" width_o="1200" height_o="800" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/b1fe945515287aa8b4b23b819429f2a3af6f8835f00c5876713598b2706b5595/Mau-Mau-011.JPG" data-mid="5439852" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/b1fe945515287aa8b4b23b819429f2a3af6f8835f00c5876713598b2706b5595/Mau-Mau-011.JPG" /> https://roopagogineni.com/The-Village-Doctor Fri, 22 Sep 2017 01:15:01 +0000 Roopa Gogineni https://roopagogineni.com/The-Village-Doctor <img width="4760" height="3499" width_o="4760" height_o="3499" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/0bc32282bc993d6ba72b048a0e2d48407320cf0556855ebab2bb2afdaa80571f/Timepass_003a.jpg" data-mid="108049423" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/0bc32282bc993d6ba72b048a0e2d48407320cf0556855ebab2bb2afdaa80571f/Timepass_003a.jpg" /> THE VILLAGE DOCTOR At 92, my grandfather still spends seven days a week in a rural clinic he set up in 1951 after serving as a doctor in the Indian army.&nbsp; His work and life were forever shaped by independence era ideals of secularism and internationalism. He trained his hospital staff, most of whom had not completed high school, in medicine and Marx. He was not alone in his thinking, but as decades passed, a fervent religiosity spread. India recently elected a far right Hindu nationalist as Prime Minister. Men and women like my grandfather became relics. These photographs are a portrait of a man and a place stuck in time. They capture his vague loneliness, surrounded by people, but in a country that has grown strange to him.&nbsp; <img width="2000" height="1333" width_o="2000" height_o="1333" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/a55e3f03b6721b484aeef9fc48f45f3aaa1e153fe9114e17ff6b57084e69bdb4/village-doctor-15.jpg" data-mid="4191013" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/a55e3f03b6721b484aeef9fc48f45f3aaa1e153fe9114e17ff6b57084e69bdb4/village-doctor-15.jpg" /> <img width="3000" height="2000" width_o="3000" height_o="2000" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/8f092ca82fb3c5688242cbb010ebbadb15d0328031e5990778250ea5970e7b59/village-doctor-18.jpg" data-mid="4191016" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/8f092ca82fb3c5688242cbb010ebbadb15d0328031e5990778250ea5970e7b59/village-doctor-18.jpg" /> <img width="3000" height="2000" width_o="3000" height_o="2000" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/e9fc85615a86628a64d5658f43c739a8773556d804951d35f227c4f89e177dfa/village-doctor-19.jpg" data-mid="4191021" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/e9fc85615a86628a64d5658f43c739a8773556d804951d35f227c4f89e177dfa/village-doctor-19.jpg" /> <img width="3000" height="2000" width_o="3000" height_o="2000" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/5208487c43918a164ac03f1d08b15e7a0290a15641a07260e7698426a2c12ccb/village-doctor-11.jpg" data-mid="4191009" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/5208487c43918a164ac03f1d08b15e7a0290a15641a07260e7698426a2c12ccb/village-doctor-11.jpg" /> <img width="3000" height="2000" width_o="3000" height_o="2000" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/ada271765211fc51c2fd59f289b65501ae397ccb7c173e56f6c2001ec66d2fa1/village-doctor-10.jpg" data-mid="4191008" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/ada271765211fc51c2fd59f289b65501ae397ccb7c173e56f6c2001ec66d2fa1/village-doctor-10.jpg" /> <img width="3000" height="2000" width_o="3000" height_o="2000" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/5302303c72ed59e10a487b23ffe40d6833c7e1164eb5de354ba3f92d921317b2/village-doctor-07.jpg" data-mid="4191005" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/5302303c72ed59e10a487b23ffe40d6833c7e1164eb5de354ba3f92d921317b2/village-doctor-07.jpg" /> <img width="3000" height="2000" width_o="3000" height_o="2000" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/a356e399a160751831d39cd6534f5faca716b51309dd0cef230251fcb88594a8/village-doctor-05.jpg" data-mid="4191003" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/a356e399a160751831d39cd6534f5faca716b51309dd0cef230251fcb88594a8/village-doctor-05.jpg" /> <img width="3000" height="1998" width_o="3000" height_o="1998" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/2eb58ccde2eca5ec8f815ae94ccd794d393ce4fbcead1a563e10ae89e2f87ff6/village-doctor-08.jpg" data-mid="4191006" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/2eb58ccde2eca5ec8f815ae94ccd794d393ce4fbcead1a563e10ae89e2f87ff6/village-doctor-08.jpg" /> <img width="3000" height="2000" width_o="3000" height_o="2000" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/205cbc8c630e02f763f0e5b240790fae8f92f7b8158fb86038227375060eb6b4/village-doctor-14.jpg" data-mid="4191012" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/205cbc8c630e02f763f0e5b240790fae8f92f7b8158fb86038227375060eb6b4/village-doctor-14.jpg" /> <img width="3000" height="2000" width_o="3000" height_o="2000" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/d440a11bf52c8f666ff33df210a60589d4c8fbbbe4b016d0b7474bdbe5a51b3a/village-doctor-13.jpg" data-mid="4191011" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/d440a11bf52c8f666ff33df210a60589d4c8fbbbe4b016d0b7474bdbe5a51b3a/village-doctor-13.jpg" /> <img width="3000" height="2000" width_o="3000" height_o="2000" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/4daa1d4706c9e518b9e88ec1dd1e9dfd5fafeb602d638112ebcc6dc5ca0b8c4b/village-doctor-12.jpg" data-mid="4191010" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/4daa1d4706c9e518b9e88ec1dd1e9dfd5fafeb602d638112ebcc6dc5ca0b8c4b/village-doctor-12.jpg" /> <img width="3000" height="2000" width_o="3000" height_o="2000" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/462621a10f366178fce24145c2b8cf772fecb5db534d1ccce4d689d71942f30b/village-doctor-17.jpg" data-mid="4191015" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/462621a10f366178fce24145c2b8cf772fecb5db534d1ccce4d689d71942f30b/village-doctor-17.jpg" /> <img width="3000" height="2000" width_o="3000" height_o="2000" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/99efb95e348fa45573bc0dc7168b0693c7814edf16f4b18ae8caaf4ce5927d7d/village-doctor-20.jpg" data-mid="4191022" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/99efb95e348fa45573bc0dc7168b0693c7814edf16f4b18ae8caaf4ce5927d7d/village-doctor-20.jpg" /> https://roopagogineni.com/Nuba-of-the-Soil Wed, 20 Sep 2017 16:52:24 +0000 Roopa Gogineni https://roopagogineni.com/Nuba-of-the-Soil <img width="5776" height="3852" width_o="5776" height_o="3852" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/5195c68b1c9bdbcacfe23b1e85db7277058d0c10e24b11e36be226ad05a7b718/L1110786-2.jpg" data-mid="4532742" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/5195c68b1c9bdbcacfe23b1e85db7277058d0c10e24b11e36be226ad05a7b718/L1110786-2.jpg" /> NUBA, OF THE SOIL The Nuba Mountains of Sudan have been cut off from the outside world since war broke out in 2011. The government in Khartoum blocks food aid and has bombed fields of crops, in addition to school, churches, and hospitals. For centuries, the Nuba people have farmed, foraged, and preserved food to last through the long dry season. Today, growing and sharing food are acts of resistance. <img width="5640" height="3760" width_o="5640" height_o="3760" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/a12800592605d3943d7bb137bd4586f536cc5b657f42ec1d97acb9b4ff4feee6/NR-Instagram-Gogineni-02.JPG" data-mid="4122932" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/a12800592605d3943d7bb137bd4586f536cc5b657f42ec1d97acb9b4ff4feee6/NR-Instagram-Gogineni-02.JPG" /> <img width="5918" height="3946" width_o="5918" height_o="3946" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/56c194c3c0975b50f41ee4313cabfee0c064854213c59d9f0db37323f2efe692/NR-Instagram-Gogineni-01.JPG" data-mid="4122931" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/56c194c3c0975b50f41ee4313cabfee0c064854213c59d9f0db37323f2efe692/NR-Instagram-Gogineni-01.JPG" /> <img width="5926" height="3952" width_o="5926" height_o="3952" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/d2585b7ebc415165df6b4bef4a3fd6cdfd58de182bda9d1ca7b57227645e53c7/L1110798.jpg" data-mid="4532747" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/d2585b7ebc415165df6b4bef4a3fd6cdfd58de182bda9d1ca7b57227645e53c7/L1110798.jpg" /> <img width="5513" height="3675" width_o="5513" height_o="3675" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/f1414c094ba9ac106da98af898bef40827fec6e6596e02af3ebf5cd87a6deadc/L1110734.jpg" data-mid="4532750" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/f1414c094ba9ac106da98af898bef40827fec6e6596e02af3ebf5cd87a6deadc/L1110734.jpg" /> <img width="5731" height="3821" width_o="5731" height_o="3821" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/137499180504c1723389d114ee097f606a4b4f0c8bc4de13d0a22410387194f4/L1110573-copy.JPG" data-mid="4532751" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/137499180504c1723389d114ee097f606a4b4f0c8bc4de13d0a22410387194f4/L1110573-copy.JPG" /> Yida, home to 70,000 Nuba who fled aerial bombardment at home, is one of the most isolated refugee camps in the world. There are no passable roads that lead to the camp because it is surrounded by conflict- Sudan’s to the north and South Sudan to the south. Nonetheless, refugees built a market that spans several blocks. Supply trucks make multiweek journeys to reach the camp with goods from Juba, Kampala, Nairobi and even Khartoum. <img width="3600" height="2400" width_o="3600" height_o="2400" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/e4460ee00580871318cb332461ffec5f4f08b7ea124d06851d3af89d5e59695d/NR-Instagram-Gogineni-04.JPG" data-mid="4122928" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/e4460ee00580871318cb332461ffec5f4f08b7ea124d06851d3af89d5e59695d/NR-Instagram-Gogineni-04.JPG" /> <img width="4582" height="3054" width_o="4582" height_o="3054" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/9660781b28c55657a529bb7e3303d33aaa6133ec7df93ae6b2f0797547a04cbe/L1110876.jpg" data-mid="4532741" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/9660781b28c55657a529bb7e3303d33aaa6133ec7df93ae6b2f0797547a04cbe/L1110876.jpg" /> <img width="3600" height="2400" width_o="3600" height_o="2400" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/984f3df06e02bf56512143e486e7ea34dc3e48dceb3ead5e3c85fc343ac4d693/Eater-Yida12.JPG" data-mid="4672766" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/984f3df06e02bf56512143e486e7ea34dc3e48dceb3ead5e3c85fc343ac4d693/Eater-Yida12.JPG" /> <img width="3600" height="2400" width_o="3600" height_o="2400" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/2a38f49e97d79075f88cc097700f7d50365358f2ea5787e62e935816174cb93f/PRI-Yida-RG02.JPG" data-mid="4122930" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/2a38f49e97d79075f88cc097700f7d50365358f2ea5787e62e935816174cb93f/PRI-Yida-RG02.JPG" /> <img width="3474" height="2316" width_o="3474" height_o="2316" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/42cffbedf98f12556f7b32ee77b4efdee42c115bc5c9178e6c53e475b764214c/Munchies-RG04.jpg" data-mid="4672767" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/42cffbedf98f12556f7b32ee77b4efdee42c115bc5c9178e6c53e475b764214c/Munchies-RG04.jpg" /> <img width="3600" height="2400" width_o="3600" height_o="2400" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/09837ac347a3fb266a4ae284219c691190d96c4f3144b4ada14490f1f28b9a92/PRI-Yida-RG01.JPG" data-mid="4122929" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/09837ac347a3fb266a4ae284219c691190d96c4f3144b4ada14490f1f28b9a92/PRI-Yida-RG01.JPG" /> https://roopagogineni.com/The-Last-Spanish-Shepherds Sun, 17 Sep 2017 12:42:39 +0000 Roopa Gogineni https://roopagogineni.com/The-Last-Spanish-Shepherds THE LAST SPANISH SHEPHERDS in progress <img width="3600" height="2572" width_o="3600" height_o="2572" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/8ed7173b7a5c737080f049f572e891130de2efe20289ee7abd806b0e224e20a7/Spanish-Shepherds02.JPG" data-mid="4568539" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/8ed7173b7a5c737080f049f572e891130de2efe20289ee7abd806b0e224e20a7/Spanish-Shepherds02.JPG" /> <img width="2500" height="1786" width_o="2500" height_o="1786" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/d57d8a5369263376a2253783b3bf4572874e8295d92538b050c625eb41243c37/RG-Shepherds-011.jpg" data-mid="4568550" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/d57d8a5369263376a2253783b3bf4572874e8295d92538b050c625eb41243c37/RG-Shepherds-011.jpg" /> https://roopagogineni.com/Riding-Time Tue, 07 Apr 2026 12:48:48 +0000 Roopa Gogineni https://roopagogineni.com/Riding-Time RIDING TIME directed by Roopa Gogineni &amp; Farhaan Mumtaz2025, 19’ Neza bazi, an ancient South Asian cavalry sport adopted by British colonial officers, has two distinct scenes in today’s UK. There is the national team (posh, tweed-wearing) and a quickly growing Pakistani British circuit at the heart of this film. Then there is Jaleal, a dual-heritage competitor who braids manes and sharpens lances while quietly dreaming of show jumping. Filmed over three summers in the northern town of Bradford, RIDING TIME meanders from the absurd to the profound. Juxtaposing the boisterous play and caretaking of the stables with the pounding hooves and fine kurtas of competition, the film follows its protagonists into a transcendent space between geographies, childhood and adulthood, people and horses. World Premiere Leeds International Film Festival 2025 Jury Special Mention International Premiere Berlin International Film Festival 2026 - Generation Kplus <img width="2529" height="3600" width_o="2529" height_o="3600" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/5a990ccda11d01ae9fa92cf3b3bd959b4540a62c769cfb485ad0727e5364703c/Riding-Time-Mar-2026-Poster-small.jpg" data-mid="246928861" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/5a990ccda11d01ae9fa92cf3b3bd959b4540a62c769cfb485ad0727e5364703c/Riding-Time-Mar-2026-Poster-small.jpg" />