"Photos of one of the world's oldest continuously inhabited cities are on display in central London right now. This photography exhibition seeks to challenge the familiar image of India's Banaras (Varanasi) as a city defined by Hindu pilgrimage and the Ganges River's sacred waters. Instead of dwelling on its famous riverfront scenes, the exhibition turns its lens on lesser-seen communities and Banaras's often-overlooked Mughal history, which increasingly sits uncomfortably with the city's Hindu traditions in modern India."
"The exhibition's strength lies in its focus on the everyday life that continues amid crumbling, often threatened architecture. Sadly, in contemporary India, Mughal history is frequently contested, and many sites are shown as needing police protection from Hindutva extremists who seek to turn India into a single religion state. If it seeks to change minds about the city's Muslim heritage, then the exhibition is probably preaching to the converted, since most visitors will not agree with the Hindutva approach anyway."
The exhibition presents photographs of Banaras (Varanasi), shifting focus from the Ganges riverfront and Hindu pilgrimage to lesser-seen neighbourhoods and Mughal-era sites. It highlights places associated with Crown Prince Jahandar Shah and his descendants, including mosques, gardens, cemeteries and devotional sites that lack protected status. Many such sites exist on the margins of public awareness and face deterioration, neglect and threats. Photographs document everyday life amid crumbling architecture and note that Mughal history is contested in contemporary India, with some locations requiring police protection from Hindutva extremists. The show runs at the SOAS Gallery until 21 March 2026 and is free to visit.
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