Days of heavy rains have resulted in flooded homes and streets bringing life to a standstill in Bihar, Patna. Amid all this a photoshoot of a woman, during the flood-like situation in the city is going viral online.
Called Mermaid in Disaster, the photoshoot featured Aditi Singh, a National Institute of Fashion Technology (NIFT) student in a red thigh-high slit dress. In the images, that have gone viral, Aditi can be seen posing in the middle of the streets with a smile on her face.
The photos were shared on Instagram by photographer Saurabh Anuraj with the caption, "Mermaid in disaster!! Shot during the flood-like situation in Patna."
The purpose of the shoot, according to Anuraj was to show the condition of the city, he said in his Facebook post, "photoshoot bs patna ke current situation ko dikhane ke liye kiya gyaa hai isko galat way me na le (This photoshoot was done to show the current situation in Patna. Don't take it in the wrong sense)."
However, it has left the internet with divided opinions. While some people are calling them out for insensitively romanticizing the floods to their own advantage, others are calling it a good initiative.
One person wrote, "Who can smile like this in a disaster?" Another said, "You cannot romanticize or glorify a natural calamity," said another.
Others defended the photo shoot saying, "Love the concept." Another person wrote, "A great initiative with great clicks."
After facing a lot of criticism on the internet, Saurabh took to his Instagram to post a statement with a number of BTS videos to showcase the hard work behind their work.
He wrote, "It was not that easy. Jinko lg rha bs ye ek photoshoot tha, wo dekh le. Ek message ke liye kitna krna padta hai, ghar baith ke balcony se video banana aur kisi ko criticise krna kitna asan hota. Kabhi yahan aake dekho kya halat hota hai. Kisi ko shauk nhi hota aise jagah jake shoot krne ka jaahan nala ka pani ho khaskar ek model ke liye wahan jake pose krna. Bs yaad rakho sabka apna tarika Hota hai har cheez ko dikhane ka (It was not that easy. The people who think it was just a photoshoot, they can see this. To post a message, make a video while sitting in balcony of your home and to criticise someone is very easy. Try to come here and see what we go through. No one likes to shoot in a place which has sewage water, especially for a model to stand and pose there. Just remember, everyone has their own way to show things)."