Uploaded June 2011 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
Vrindavan is a holy town in Uttar Pradesh. It is the site where Krishna spent his childhood, and has hundreds of temples dedicated to the worship of Radha and Krishna. It's also known as the "City of Widows" because of the population of abandoned widows who seek refuge here. These unfortunate widows spend their days in ashrams to receive pittances in return for chanting devotional songs on behalf of pious Hindu families. They wear white saris as tradition dictates, and they appear like white shadows, fleeting in the darkness of the ashrams...waiting for deliverance.
Tewfic El-Sawy is a freelance photographer based in New York City who specializes in documenting endangered cultures and traditional life ways of Asia, Latin America and Africa. His images, articles and photo features were published in various magazines, and my travel photographs were featured by some of the largest adventure travel companies in the United States and Great Britain, as well as in the art collections of multinational banks and corporations. He also teaches documentary travel photography, as well as multimedia.
He organizes and leads photo expeditions and multimedia workshops for photographers who share his interest and enthusiasm for unusual cultures, uncommon locations and lesser known religious rituals and other festivals; mostly in South and South East Asia.
Vrindavan is a holy town in Uttar Pradesh. It is the site where Krishna spent his childhood, and has hundreds of temples dedicated to the worship of Radha and Krishna. It's also known as the "City of Widows" because of the population of abandoned widows who seek refuge here. These unfortunate widows spend their days in ashrams to receive pittances in return for chanting devotional songs on behalf of pious Hindu families. They wear white saris as tradition dictates, and they appear like white shadows, fleeting in the darkness of the ashrams...waiting for deliverance.
Tewfic El-Sawy is a freelance photographer based in New York City who specializes in documenting endangered cultures and traditional life ways of Asia, Latin America and Africa. His images, articles and photo features were published in various magazines, and my travel photographs were featured by some of the largest adventure travel companies in the United States and Great Britain, as well as in the art collections of multinational banks and corporations. He also teaches documentary travel photography, as well as multimedia.
He organizes and leads photo expeditions and multimedia workshops for photographers who share his interest and enthusiasm for unusual cultures, uncommon locations and lesser known religious rituals and other festivals; mostly in South and South East Asia.
