Constables say cheese for calendar

This year, giving company to the limited editions of the Kingfisher swimsuit calendar and photographer Daboo Ratnani’s calendar is the Mumbai police’s almanac. Debasish Panigrahi reports.

This year, giving company to the limited editions of the Kingfisher swimsuit calendar and photographer Daboo Ratnani’s calendar is the Mumbai police’s almanac. What the Mumbai police’s first-ever calendar lacks in extravaganza and expenses compared to the other glossy calendars, it makes up on the message — We Care. The calendar features 12 photographs of constables on duty, shot in natural light.

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“We chose our constables for the simple reason that these are the men who work at the grass root level,” explained Rajwardhan Sinha, deputy commissioner of police, Special Branch.

Sinha was a member of the core committee, which had conceived and formulated the department’s first calendar.

Last year, the Mumbai police had published an almanac but it had featured pictures collected from newspapers and freelance photographers.

This year, the police had hired photographer Prakash Dubey.

“The proposal to shoot for the Mumbai police calendar came from my friend, Shriramchandran whose publicity agency, Image Arts and Company, has been doing projects for the Mumbai police. I liked the concept of ‘We Care’ because I too belong to a policeman’s family. My father was with the Uttar Pradesh police,” Dubey told the Hindustan Times.

But the task was not easy, revealed Dubey, as the tough-looking policemen would freeze in front of the camera. “During shoots, a crowd would gather assuming that an incidents had taken place. It was also difficult convincing people to pose for the calendar along with the constables,” Dubey added. “I was the photographer, art designer… all rolled into one. However, the final product was very satisfying.”

While 2,000 copies of the calendar would be circulated within the department, some would be given to other government offices, added Rajwardhan. Inspector Feroze Patel, who was part of the committee, said they plan to distribute a few calendars to select schools and colleges, which are involved in police initiatives.