This group meets every weekend,and captures the city in snaps This group of photography buffs in Mumbai has never found a reason in the past two and a half years to skip its Mumbai Weekend Shoot (MWS). The group,comprising around 400,meets every weekend to capture places in and around Mumbai on their cameras. At least 30 members show up every weekend. To call it a hobby would be a misnomer, says Debi Sen Gupta,43,a chartered accountant and one of the four co-ordinators of MWS. Its more of a passion, says Mulchand Dedhia,25,another dedicated co-ordinator of the group. He also runs Meter Down,a firm that started Mumbais first autorickshaw magazine. There hasnt been a single weekend when we havent met. In the last two and a half years,weve done at least 140 shoots in different locations in and around Mumbai, says Dedhia. The tag line of their website,www.mumbaiweekendshoot.com,aptly describes the members: Madly into photography. The group was started by three men who are not in the picture anymore,Dedhia says. Since 2008,MWS is being coordinated by Dedhia,Sengupta,Shishir Dhulla and Riddhi Rathi. Our youngest member is 12 years old and the oldest is above 65, Dedhia says,adding,Depending on the location of the shoot every weekend,people turn up as per their convenience. We assemble at one point and take a group shot at the beginning or end of the shoot, Sengupta says. Such is the dedication of the members that when Dedhias camera kit was stolen,he started taking pictures on his cellphone. You dont necessarily need a digital SLR, he says. The picture quality would obviously take a beating but thats no reason to skip the shoot. From dentists,gynaecologists,stock-brokers,designers,students to retirees,all wear the photographers hat on the weekend with MWS. We dont charge any fee. We do this for the love of photography, Dedhia says,adding the group has no intentions of institutionalising itself. We hold overnight workshops as well and charge only to cover the expenses. The Bombay Fortress Garden near the Sassoon Dock,a Chinese temple nearby,Khotachiwadi,Sanjay Gandhi National Park and Chor Bazaar have been a few of its memorable shoots. The MWS had also organised a photography contest in January this year and received 400 entries. A hundred of these were shortlisted by producer-director Kiran Rao and her Dhobhi Ghat team to be exhibited at PVR Cinemas in Juhu.
