Daughter of a Prostitute, Alwar, Rajasthan, India, October 31, 2009

She stands here like a queen on a throne, with a sense of compassion that few in such high places have. A daughter of a prostitute, surrounded by acts of immeasurable difficulty, she stands proud.

How much more can she take? How many more years can she bear?

She has survived so far and, with the help of Nirvanavan Foundation, will rise above her circumstances to become a different person than her society expects.

On this day, she gives me more than five minutes to make her portrait, first in black and white and then in color, time is absent. She is the person that gives my work its worth, for without her story my work has little meaning.

She is an example for the rest of us.

More portraits can be seen at the above websites and are for sale to benefit the foundations.