Smita Sharma

We Cry In Silence is the winner of the 2023 Lucie Photo Book Prize @luciefoundation in the Independent Category. Am filled with gratitude for this recognition. The journey started in 2015 after a chance meeting with a trafficking survivor that led me on this challenging path. Along the way I met many who supported my vision and from whom I learnt. From individuals such as police officers, anti trafficking activists to organisations such as Sanlaap and @shaktivahini and most importantly the girls themselves. Ever thankful to @natgeo and @roseleen for giving me the opportunity to work for the National Geographic magazine and for publishing ‘Stolen Lives.’ Special thanks to my editor @pritheeva , Yudhijit and John Hoeffel for being such a great team and for making Stolen Lives successful. After seven years of working on this project, the book was made possible with @fotoevidencepressnyc for publishing this multi-lingual book. @roseleen for beautifully editing it and designers Joao Linneu and @fefajardo for their innovative design. Who would imagine my writings to be in yellow pages with black texts if they didn’t think of it as the universal language of alert for ‘caution’. The idea was to make a book with photographs, texts, illustrations, resources and other educational materials - we wanted to make an impact and still make it look beautiful. THANK YOU Team ! Also big thanks to my friends, the photo community and strangers who backed the kickstarter campaign and supported the publishing of We Cry In Silence. Special thanks to the jury for selecting my book for the Lucie award and for motivating me. I’m working on the educational campaign and taking it to villages, cities, educational institutions, communities and law enforcement and judiciary officials who can change policies. Trafficking is a SILENT crime and my mission is to continue to break this silence. If you are interested in buying the book, please go to the link in my bio. Thank you 🙏🏽

A bit late to post here, I was honoured to receive the Amnesty International Photojournalism Award 2021 recently. The emotions arising from winning this prestigious award are difficult to process right now while India is going through such a terrible public health crisis. This work is really a testament to the bravery and resilience of the girls who allowed me into their lives and I am grateful that they put their trust in me. Also a huge thanks to @natgeo and my editor @pritheeva for standing by this complicated story that investigated child sex trafficking in India and Bangladesh. Congratulations to all the other nominees and thank you so much to all of the people and organisations who have supported this work 🙏🏽 .uk #amnestymediaawards

I gave my first @ted talk recently at the #TEDWOMEN conference at Palm Springs before a packed audience.To say I wasn’t nervous would be a lie but once I walked up to the stage, I felt this calmness and gratitude for having the opportunity to share my ideas and experience in front of such a huge audience. I shared the stories of many women and girls I have photographed over the years. I also shared a bit about my photography process and how I create visual narratives with grace and compassion that seeks to inspire action around systemic issues of gender inequality. Am very touched to receive a standing ovation after my talk. A huge motivation to continue doing my work. Stay tuned for the video once it releases next year. Photos by - Marla Aufmuth and Gilberto Tadday. . . #genderequality #tedtalk #trafficking #sexualviolence @tedfellow

Photo by @smitashrm | This assignment for @thetimes was emotionally exhausting. It documents stories of abandonment, neglect, and hardship among the elderly in India. While old age homes in many Western countries are often chosen and well-equipped, in India, cultural expectations place care on families, leaving many abandoned and forgotten. Pic 1 - Raju, a former cook at an Army canteen lived with his two sons and their families. A road accident left him blind. His sons coerced him into giving his thumb impression on documents taking control of his savings and apartment. They brought him to Delhi under the pretext of seeking medical treatment and abandoned him. He was rescued by police and taken to an old age home, where he now lives. Pic 2- Sakira and Anjali were abandoned by their families and now live with dementia, unable to remember their age, families, or where they came from. Anjali was found on the road with a severe head injuries. She was given the name “Anjali” by staff at the shelter. Pic 3 - Shashikant Sharma, a former security guard at a textile factory in Gujarat, moved into a shelter home in Delhi after retirement, with no family able to support him following the loss of his son to an accident. More captions in the comment below. Follow @smitashrm for more stories on social, environmental and gender issues.

The past two and a half months flew by at the Foundry Photojournalism Workshop. This year, we had 100 students from 42 countries. Sharing my class with these incredible students with one missing from the photo. Grateful to be part of such an amazing community. I genuinely enjoy teaching and I taught in three languages ☺️. Thank you @viifoundation @photowings @cnemazie @FoundryPhoto @macieknabrdalik My Class : @paroshmuhaimin @shrobonadas @stammeringstoryteller @sudipmaiti09 @afzaladeebkhan @dibyashaw_divine @amdad.photo @ishan.Indrajeet @anurabdhar

Photo & video by @smitashrm | Last year, I had the opportunity to work on an important initiative with the @worldeconomicforum on cancer care in Meghalaya, India. This assignment has a personal significance, as I was raised in Shillong, the capital of this state. Referred to as India’s “cancer capital,” as the state faces a complex challenge driven not just by medical gaps but also by cultural barriers and local customs like chewing kwai - the local betel leaf with areca nut and lime often mixed with tobacco. Now the local government is focusing on early screening and community awareness to tackle the problem. Grateful to have contributed to this report on this important global issue. Text by Pooja Chhabria, assisted by @meharbaaan and Princess Giri. Follow @smitashrm for more images and stories. . #cancer #meghalaya #india #photojournalism

Every time I visit the dumping yard in Kishangarh, I meet tourists who pose for selfies in this surreal “snow valley” which is actually an industrial dumping ground for marble waste. During every conversation, I ask them if they know what this place really is. Most of them do. And yet, almost every time, the answer is the similar: “We just came here to get some nice photos in the ‘snow’ This is a wonderful place and it looks like Switzerland!” These responses make me wonder maybe this isn’t just a dumpsite. Maybe it’s a mirror. A reflection of who we’ve become today. We are drawn to beauty on the surface, even when we know what lies beneath. A world obsessed with appearances and our desire to escape, to pretend, to build an imaginary world around us. The first image is of Arjun Singh Rathod, a local horse vendor, guiding Yuvraj Singh through this landscape for a small fee. . #kishangarh #marblewaste #dumpingyard

Very pleased to share that my long-term project We Cry In Silence, on trafficking, has been published in the March issue of @thecaravanmagazine to mark Women’s Month. The Caravan is India’s leading magazine for long-form narrative and investigative journalism. I’ve also written the accompanying text for the visuals, making this publication especially personal. Deeply grateful to @sukrutianah for the sensitive photo edit, and Maya Palit for her thoughtful text editing and narrative.

In northwest India, a field full of marble debris has an otherworldly allure. The Kishangarh Dumping Yard—also described as the “Moon Land of Rajasthan”. This place has become a hot location for filming Bollywood movies, and music videos and pre-wedding shoots. Resembling snow, the white plateaus and mountains created by marble slurry dumped and left to dry are similarly popular among tourists and influencers, with wedding photos a common fixture. But multiple studies have highlighted the environmental and public health hazards posed by this type of marble slurry, from the minute dust particles that inflame respiratory diseases like bronchitis to the slurry that destroys soil cover, contaminates groundwater, and prevents vegetation from growing. The findings have ignited conversation among some social media influencers who feel that the dump yard should not be romanticized as a tourist destination. Featured in the January issue of @natgeo Videos by @dj_moto_acoustic

It’s been a while since I made a post. Perhaps because, every now and then, life asks us to pause and sit quietly with ourselves and ask: Why do we do what we do? What’s the purpose? I spoke with a friend today that I feel the pressure of not promoting my work. I have tons of pending publications that I never shared. He offered a gentler thought: maybe this distance is not neglect, but a kind of closeness. That perhaps I’m spiritually connecting with my work, or it could be a burnout or maybe it’s just contentment. Strangely, I’ve felt most connected in the most unlikely of places: an industrial wasteland. I know it sounds weird. Whenever I’m in Kishangarh to work on my marble project, I go to the Dumping Yard very early in the morning before the place opens up for tourists. It took three years of persistence, of building trust with the Marble Association, to be allowed into that space at that hour. A privilege I don’t take lightly. Sharing this image & video from one of the early mornings when the sun rose from the veils of dust. In that barren expanse, I felt the crisp air and a stillness that felt sacred. Who knew that in a dumpster I would feel closer to nature and self. . #dumpingyard #marble #kishangarh

At @vital.impacts , we believe storytelling plays a critical role in protecting people, cultures, and ecosystems.
 We are honored to work with Smita Sharma (@smitashrm ), a visual journalist whose work centers dignity, accountability, and care for communities most impacted by environmental and human rights crises. 
Smita focuses on gender violence, human trafficking, and environmental issues across the Global South. A National Geographic photographer, TED Fellow, and IWMF Fellow, her work has appeared in The New York Times, TIME, BBC World, The Wall Street Journal, and more—and has been exhibited globally, including at the United Nations.
 This year, Smita is mentoring Roun Ry (@rounry ), supporting a project documenting both the loss and restoration of Cambodia’s mangrove forests.
 Mentors like Smita are why this fellowship exists: to guide emerging storytellers with care, rigor, and commitment, helping them create work that uplifts communities, protects ecosystems, and drives meaningful change. 📷: @smitashrm

I am pleased to share this article I wrote, which examines work by incredible photojournalist mothers around the globe, and also frames the biases they face for having children. In some cases, motherhood is treated as a professional liability. That is not okay. I am indebted to the visual journalists who collaborated with me on this piece: @lynseyaddario @oksana_par @gedeusdieuline and @smitashrm . Also grateful to editor @tomasz_trzebiatowski and @frames_magazine for giving me space to highlight this issue. “When the industry sidelines mothers, it doesn’t just limit women; it narrows the worldview that journalism offers the public. Including and supporting female photojournalists who are mothers is not an act of accommodation. It is an investment in a broader, more nuanced visual record of our world.” See link in bio. #photojournalism #women #mothers #equality #conflict Photo: courtesy of Oksana Parafeniuk