A new photo series launched by WaterAid that reveals the different traditions observed by communities around the world to ‘protect’ mothers and welcome new babies, giving them the best start in life. The touching series was released by WaterAid as a part of its Water Effect campaign, which aims to help protect mothers and ensure all babies have the best possible start in life by getting clean water, decent sanitation and good hygiene in health centers access the world. I shot the following images as a part for the gallery from India. (Funded by WaterAid United Kingdom)

Janam Ghutti is supposed to be an effective remedy for the following conditions in babies: Stomach related problems and ailments such as constipation, diarrhoea, gastric and colic, and vomiting. It is known to increase appetite and purify blood in human body. I spotted an excited Rita dancing to the tunes of 'Lamberghini' on the streets of Mangolpuri. When I asked her what her son’s name was, she said Rahul because she was a Shahrukh Khan fan and I couldn’t help smiling. That is when I realised that Bollywood had penetrated the very nooks of the country. Despite everything, Rita trusted the Mugli Ghutti 555, which is commonly used by every other mother in the country.

This mother never forgets to apply kajal on her child’s eyes as well as his forehead. While talking about the past, she told me that her elder son was a healthy child during his birth and she never paid any attention to the rituals on a serious note. Eventually, the boy became very ill and everybody from the basti blamed her for having ignored the baby rituals. So now she said, “Madam, bade vale ko khana dena bhool jati hun aajkal par iski nazar bacha ke rakhna zaroori hai, varna risk hojata hai.”