Home and belonging in India: A story in colorful photos
15 July 2022
Caption: “Home and Belongingness” is a six-month mentorship programme which turns eight young refugees in New Delhi, India, into visual storytellers as they reflect on their personal journeys of loss and hope and their search for identities through the lens of their cameras.
In 2014, the United Nations General Assembly declared 15 July as World Youth Skills Day, to celebrate the strategic importance of equipping young people with skills for employment, decent work and entrepreneurship. This year's theme is: Transforming youth skills for the future. To mark the day, we bring you a photo essay from our team in India about an innovative skills-building programme for youth.
What is home? What does it mean to belong? This photo series follows the story of eight young refugees in India who took part in 6-month mentorship programme on ‘Home and Belongingness’ led by UNHCR India.
From June to December of last year, these young visual storytellers explored these questions, trying to understand and capture their personal journeys of home, family and identity.
As they record and reflect on their own journey touching on what they have lost and what they have found, their hopes, identities, past and present, the stories that emerged are little pieces that lead to a bigger picture of home and belongingness: a mother braids her daughter’s hair, a bird soars in the sky, a face peers out of a window, prayers, the sound of music. And new green leaves that symbolize hope.
Caption: “The smell of books, the euphony of the paper as I turn the pages, the light that falls on the books when I sit to read.” - Abdul Bari Delawery capturing a picture of his sister.
Caption: “The ache for 'home' still lives in me, the sense of belonging, rootedness and warmth that I can carry wherever I go.” Sediqa Rezaie captures “the aroma of bread baked by her mother”
Caption: “I feel the love and care in her hands and it makes me feel at home.” Mursal Mohammadi captures the peace that envelops her when her mother braids her hair.
Caption: “Home is an emotion, a bag of million mixed feelings. It is made of the house we live in, the love of my family, the memories we make, a safe space, it is the sound of laughter and the sadness we share. It is the lingering taste of my mother’s food, the siblings' conversation, yet I struggle to find ‘home’ in its entirety.” Wahidullah Faizi captures the streets of Delhi.
Caption: “A place of warmth, familiarity and rest. A place with our loved ones.” - Kap captures the sight and sound of a pressure cooker, which brings to his mind the feeling of being at home.
Caption: “Home is a ‘family’ that loves you with all their heart, ‘people’ who give you a sense of belonging. It is my mom’s face and my grandmother’s prayer. Home is a ‘Book’, the word of God that saves me from sinking
Caption: “I had a home / There is a home that I left / But the home still lies within me in my heart / I feel like a Bird that can't find its nest / I feel like a baby who has abandoned her mother / My feelings are as wild as my thoughts / But my expressions are as quiet as night” — a poem by Khalida Musafirzada, Ajaz Musaferzada’s sister
Written by Antra Mudgal. You can find the complete photo essay here.
UNCHR is part of the UN India Country Team, which comprises UN entities on the ground in India, including APCTT, FAO, IFAD, ILO, IMF, IOM, MGIEP, UNEP, ESCAP, UN-Habitat, UN Women, UNAIDS, UNDP, UNDSS, UNESCO, UNFPA, UNHCR, UNIC, UNICEF, UNIDO, UNODC, UNV, WFP, WHO, and the World Bank. The UN India team is led by Resident Coordinator Shombi Sharp.
