Bronze in Special/Smartphone Photography / 2026 / Special / Smartphone Photography

• Prize
  Bronze in Special/Smartphone Photography
• Photographer
  Sai Kasthala, United States
• Date of Photograph
  July 13, 2024

I grew up knowing the Ganges as sacred, but actually being in the holy city of Varanasi was a different experience altogether. Hindus believe that to die here is to be released from samsara, the cycle of death and rebirth. These three images, shot on an iPhone, trace that cycle deliberately: a crowded, breathing city; the submerged temple, caught between worlds; and finally, a wooden boat, solitary on the river where life finds its beginning and its end. I chose monochrome because color would have dated the images, and this place is transcendental. This is the Ganges. This is Varanasi.