THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Daniel Rowles had done quite a bit of reading up on God’s Own Country before packing his bags for this exotic locale. And though he was travelling as part of the India Experience programme of Cleveland State University, Ohio, where he was doing a Masters in Social Work, Daniel had decided that he would do an independent study on Kerala in the course of the 30-day programme. “Initially, I thought I’ll do a study on children. I knew I was going to attend rituals like the naming ceremony and I had read about the customs related to childhood. But, my professor, Murali Nair, who has been guiding the programme, suggested that I do a photo exhibit instead."I thought that was a good idea because that way I would have something to share with the people of Kerala too. So I was very clear right from the beginning that I wanted to hold an exhibition here before I take them to Cleveland,” Daniel grins.Daniel included in the exhibition, held on Monday and Tuesday, scenes from the rural and urban life of Kerala, the tourist spots like the beaches of Kanyakumari and Kovalam, touching frames from his group’s visits to orphanages, and also shots that have documentary value for capturing the essence of a culture. Among his personal favourites are, ‘’the frame with a child sitting with two of my friends and the wind blowing on their faces and the one where you see a local shaman placing a piece of coconut on fire right into her mouth,” says Daniel.Twelve American students had come to Kerala this year as part of the Summer Study Abroad Programme. The stay included visits to government offices, schools and colleges, orphanages and religious places etc on weekdays. During the weekends, the group travelled around the State, making sure to cover the famed beaches, the rainforests of Wayanad and the exotic backwaters. The findings based on the field research done by the students are documented in several publications, apart from the documentaries made on topics like ‘Centenarians in Kerala: Secrets of long life’ and ‘Alternative health practices’.
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