My Shot Stories

Every place is defined by its people; Desmond Rebeiro defines Fort Kochi for me. A man who was once a part of the Communist Party is now a world famous painter. His love for art led him to quit his job and work as a house painter. However, it was not long before he left the bricks and began applying paint on canvas.

In a place like Fort Kochi, there is no dearth of inspiration for a painter. With its beautiful Chinese fishing nets, beautiful restored colonial houses, city art and ferries that take you to nearby islands. Fort Kochi is a place best explored on foot and Desmond takes a walk around the town every day, looking for ideas and inspirations. In the evenings, he gives his ideas a visual form in his gallery which he has named ‘Randes Bowl’, here he paints till wee hours with a whiskey glass in one hand and classic rock music in the background, ‘Ran’ is after his nephew ‘Randal’ and ‘Des’ is from his own name. On the choice of the word ‘bowl’ Desmond says, “I prefer not to use the word ‘gallery’ as it bodes a very formal tone and my work has no restrictions, no limitations. A ‘bowl’ depicts the idea of something where you can not only hold matter, but fill in and serve out as you wish. This is the essence of my studio.”

For the few days I was in Fort Kochi, I’d sit at his gallery door every evening, sometimes silently, and observe all the colors, the music and the life outside, people moving in and out of the Kochi Bakery, and on other times, we’d talk about life and its meaning.

The mornings were spent taking a walk around the town and admiring its beauty, evenings at Desmond’s and in the afternoon, I’d go and sit with ‘Reeni Agnis’. Reeni is a bookstore keeper and a housewife. I visited her store the first day of my arrival in Fort Kochi and we instantly became friends. I visited her next day to learn her story, she told me about her days in Bahrain where she took care of 4 children of a British family. She told me about the kids, about her own children now and how her life has changed after wedding. It was interesting to know about this lady from a simple background and the places she has lived. She gave me tips on places to see around the town and also wrote a message in my journal.

Fort Kochi made me feel like I belonged there, a connection so rare, with people so natural that I’d visit it again and again.