Caste: At Home in Hindu India - Tapa dura

A photographic record supported by personal accounts by Jarijan outcasts revealing how these 800 million people in India manage their lives in the social grip of an age-old hierarchy of religious origin. In an attempt to unravel the mysteries of this subtle doctrine, Sophie Baker went to live with families of the four main castes and experienced at first hand their impoverishment. She sketches an outline of the Hindu philosophy in which caste is rooted and reveals a moving account of the efffect of the entrenched codes of conduct that holds an entire population in thrall.

Sophie Baker's photographic career has combined arts photography in the West with Third Word photo-journalism. Over a period of twenty years she has worked with musicians and for classical theatres such as the Royal Shakespeare Company and the National Theatre, become an established film stills photographer and undertaken many projects for charities such as Help the Aged and Christian Aid. The remarkable collection of photographs in Caste reflects her enduring interest in people as subjects for her work.