India through the eyes of an 11-year-old

Most eleven-year-olds on holiday need their portable play stations, ipods and hopefully a swimming pool in their hotel to keep them entertained.

Well, that’s not the case with Year 6 student Callum Murray, who on a recent holiday to India, discovered a hidden talent that is bound to become a lifelong passion. Travelling in India earlier this year with his family, Callum played with a small digital camera. He brought home some 1200 digital mementos.

His photos, taken in Delhi, Agra, Chandigarh, Amritsar and in Rajasthan, showcase a wonderful feel for India. In Callum’s India there are forts and palaces, temples and gardens, street scenes and museum exhibits, flowers and trees, statues and doors, food, and of course, the Taj Mahal.

There is also a wedding. The Murrays had planned the trip to attend the wedding of a family friend – well-known Sydney restaurateur Surjit Gujral’s son Rasan.

A small subset of Callum’s photos, nearly a hundred, are currently on display at an exhibition at Woollahra Public School, where Callum is a student.

The exhibition is titled Callum’s India

The images on display are reproduced just as

Callum captured them – they have not been enhanced or realigned in the production process.

The young photographer thinks India is very exciting.

“There are so many different places to go, things to do and foods to eat,” he told Indian Link. “I mean, every different area has its own colours and culture. I think it was the most exciting holiday I’ve had and our family have had some great holidays! In India we stayed in ancient palaces and forts, we had camel rides and stayed in tents in the desert, we even rode in a cantor and searched for tigers in a national park. That’s really exciting”.

He is keen to return to India.

“I want to go back to India with my camera again. There are lots of places we haven’t been to yet. I’d even like to go back to the places we’ve already been to, because I think India would be different every time you go”.

“My photos help me remember everything from street scenes to great monuments, even the fog in Delhi,” he added.

The exhibition is a must see for all, as it captures the beauty of India from the eyes of an eleven-year-old who discovered a hidden talent while also discovering part of the story that is India, on his maiden visit to that country.