Photos: Armed with a camera and mischief, Japan’s ‘Insta-gran’ takes stage
Updated On Feb 21, 2018 08:44 AM IST
Kimiko Nishimoto, an 89- year-old Japanese woman tweaks the nose of fear by bringing joy to the people. She has amassed more than 43,000 followers in just a few months on Instagram since she started posting her side-splitting selfies.
1 / 7
Updated on Feb 21, 2018 08:44 AM IST
Kimiko Nishimoto, dressed in a fluffy one-piece dog suit, gestures during a self photo shoot outside her house in the western Japanese city of Kumamoto. The madcap Japanese great-grandmother armed with a camera and an appetite for mischief has shot to fame for taking side-splitting selfies -- many of which appear to put her in harm’s way. (Behrouz Mehri / AFP File Photo)
2 / 7
Updated on Feb 21, 2018 08:44 AM IST
Nishimoto slips into her dog costume chained to a post in her garden to take photos of herself. She only took up photography aged 72, quickly became hooked on the hobby after being invited to join a local class. Closing in on her 90th birthday, she has amassed more than 41,000 followers in just two months since she started posting her hilarious snaps on Instagram. (Behrouz Mehri / AFP File Photo)
3 / 7
Updated on Feb 21, 2018 08:44 AM IST
Such is her celebrity now that many fans were shut out of her exhibition at the Tokyo gallery in December as it struggled to cope with the crowds. “At first I didn’t even know that my photos were that popular,” the former housewife muses. “It’s not like ideas just suddenly pop into my head but wherever I go I think about what it would be fun to dress up as in that place,” she chuckles. (Behrouz Mehri / AFP File Photo)
4 / 7
Updated on Feb 21, 2018 08:44 AM IST
She manages her social media accounts herself through her smartphone, while her son helps her to set up some of the shots. Many of Nishimoto’s photos show her face contorted in mock anguish. (Behrouz Mehri / AFP File Photo)
5 / 7
Updated on Feb 21, 2018 08:44 AM IST
Sassy octogenarian, who has three grandchildren and six great-grandchildren, consults with her son Kazutami (L) to select a costume for a photoshoot. These days Nishimoto lives with a humanoid robot called Pepper, bought for her by her son. (Behrouz Mehri / AFP File Photo)
6 / 7
Updated on Feb 21, 2018 08:44 AM IST
Nishimoto gestures in front of her picture on the opening day of her photo exhibition in Tokyo which took place in December. This was her first solo exhibition. (Behrouz Mehri / AFP File Photo)
7 / 7
Updated on Feb 21, 2018 08:44 AM IST