Photographer & Filmmaker
Sunrise in Sector 3
… I have just arrived back to the capital city of Islamabad after 14 days filming at Shabhaz refugee camp near Hyderabad in Pakistan’s Sindh province, one of the areas heavily affected by this country’s recent horrendous floods. This is the first time I’ve been to Pakistan and it has been a very emotional time but I am leaving with a warm feeling in my heart thanks to the incredibly welcoming people that I have met here.
For the last couple of weeks I have been working with one displaced family originally from Kamber-Shahdadkot district, now residing in the rather unimaginatively named ‘Sector 3′ of Shabhaz camp. They have been living there under canvas since fleeing their village, livestock and all, four months ago after watching their homes and many of their possessions get washed away by the water torrents that decimated everything in their path.
With Christmas just round the corner and a strong longing for home inside, spending time within the aura of this lovely family has been an extremely humbling experience for me, and one which I will definitely be bringing back with me to the mayhem of consumerism that I will no doubt be confronted by upon returning home to my own country in a few days time.
In early January I will be back here to follow up this story which I am shooting for Oxfam as part of their relief fund raising program for Pakistan. As soon as we have cut an edit of the first film I will post it here.
Warm smiles, big hearts