Peshawar

I arrived in Pakistan at Peshawar, the lawless capital of the lawless North West Frontier Province. It's a dangerous and intruiging city that's ruled by warlords and where gunshops and illegal alcohol and drugs businesses are found next to clothes and food stalls. It's a place where you look over your shoulder once and a while and where you don't want to step on the wrong man's toes.
A few weeks before I got there, I saw on the news that a suicide bomber had killed 20 people at the Peshawar police headquarters. A young man who lived in Peshawar told me the story and showed me the site of the occurence. The 2nd police commander had ordered a crackdown in the smuggler's bazaar and had demolished a handful of shops that sold illegal goods. The local warlord retaliated and sent a suicide attacker into the police station, who blew himself and 20 others up, including the commander.

The Pakistanis love movies and adore their movie heroes, often Bollywood actors. The popular movies are generally a loud and colourful mix of violence, dance and censored romance.


When I saw this wall at a photoshop I knew there was a dynamic picture to be taken. All I needed was a 'real' person to complete the scene. This young man was all too happy to pose for me.