Ramesh Shukla
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A brief biography
As in 2021
Asma Ali Zain, July 11, 2021: The Times of India
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From: Asma Ali Zain, July 11, 2021: The Times of India
Ramesh Shukla’s home in the busy district of Karama in Dubai is like being inside a museum. Every nook and cranny of the three-bedroom house is packed with 50 years of memorabilia, which he has collected over time as a photographer in the UAE.
You find stacks of books that he has either written or been featured in on every table and reams of photo prints, mostly black-and-white collections from 1965-76, that lay spread out in the rooms. What immediately catches your attention though is the massive framed photographs taken by him of the UAE royalty and landscapes paintings of rural India adorning the walls.
Not everyone, however, has the privilege of being able to view this private collection. Most of his works, he says, are housed in Dubai Silicon Oasis and Jumeirah Beach Residence, apart from the Etihad museum in Jumeirah in Dubai, which has a permanent exhibition of his works.
Shukla, 84, who is sprightly and active for his age, is known as the unofficial photographer of the UAE royal families. He has not only captured the elites of Emirates over the years, he has also chronicled some of the most crucial moments in the tiny nation’s history.
One of his most iconic photos, for instance, is one that he clicked six years after he landed in the country, in 1971, when the rulers were signing the treaty to form the UAE. The image is today used as the nation’s ‘Spirit of the Union’ logo on the UAE’s National Day every December 2. Ask him about the historical event and he will speak about it as though it took place yesterday.
“I reached there at 6.30 am and I saw that there was a huge table in the centre,” says Shukla. “The first one to arrive was Sheikh Rashid Al Maktoum, the ruler of Dubai, followed by Fujairah, the Sheikh of Sharjah, Sheikh Zayed Al Nahyan of Abu Dhabi, who also became the first president of the UAE after its formation. They were all so happy once they signed. Soon after they took out a flag, they called me over, and said take a photo, quick, we are going to fly the flag. Four people caught the flag and I clicked that iconic photo.” The Sheikh of Ras Al Khaimah and Sheikh Saqr Al Qasimi joined the federation six months later.
Journey to the UAE Shukla was only 15 when his father gifted him Rolleicord, a medium-format twin lens reflex camera made by Franke & Heidecke (Rollei). “The day I got it, I told my father, ‘just wait and see what wonders I’ll do with this’, and he just laughed at me,” Shukla says. Five years later, he moved to Bombay (now Mumbai) from Gujarat with a promise of making it big. “I used to shoot all over India and would get my photographs published in Femina and Times of India,” he says. Capturing the street life of Bombay won him some praise, but deep down he knew his destiny lay elsewhere.
In 1965, Shukla’s wife, Taru, bought him a ticket for Sharjah and the 21-year-old set sail for a new life abroad. (His wife and son Neel would join him a few years later.)
“I had 50 rupees and 50 film rolls in my pocket when I arrived there,” he says.
After shooting in the UAE for a few months, Shukla returned to India to have his photos again published in Femina and TOI. “When the people here saw the photos printed in a major newspaper, they were surprised and asked me to come back,” he says. This time around, he rented a small room in Deira for himself, which had no light and water. “I also purchased a bicycle for 90 rupees.”
A royal affair His first brush with the royal families happened in 1968 when he heard about a camel race taking place in Sharjah. “I took my camera, put 25 film rolls in my pocket and cycled to Sharjah, which took me about five hours,” he adds.
It was 11 am when Shukla spotted the sheikhs. Sh Zayed and Sh Rashid were casually sitting and watching the race. “To get a good picture of them, I lay down on the ground and started clicking their pictures.”
Shukla then rushed back to Dubai, developed the roll in his room and asked a small studio across the road to help him make the prints. “I cycled back to the event and tried to show my pictures to the sheikhs from a distance of at least 15-feet. I soon caught the attention of Sh Zayed, who looked at me and said ‘ta’al’ [come]. When I showed him the photos, he seemed very happy with them. I also asked for his signature, which he obliged. He then gave me his pen and said ‘yu fanan’, which later someone told me means, ‘you are number one’.” Shukla remembers looking into the eyes of Sh Zayed and being mesmerised by them. “What a powerful man he was,” he says. With this, Shukla gained the trust of the royal families and some fame. “I started winning awards and then I started publishing books,” says Shukla, who is today working on his eighth book. “One day, Sheikh Rashid, the Ruler of the Emirate of Dubai, called me over and asked if I required anything… I told him I needed a license to work. I told him I didn’t have money for the license. He said that I didn’t need to pay for anything. From that moment on, I was allowed to capture every event in the country through my lens.”
A body of work Shukla has now known the UAE royals for over 50 years. Today he accompanies them wherever they go, even abroad. “At one event, where Sh Zayed and Rashid were present, I was taking a photograph, when I slipped and I fell on Sh Zayed. I got flustered and began to apologise profusely to his highness. And he just said, ‘no problem’.” Shukla has only praises to share about the royals, who he feels are extremely helpful and accommodating. “I would often make Sh Zayed laugh with the things I would say and it helped me capture precious moments of his,” he says.
Shukla’s works, which include 100 photos of UAE’s history, are also displayed at all Dubai Metro stations. “I have not only received love from the rulers here, but also from the Arab people,” he says.
But looking back at his career, Shukla says he never chased money, only his passion. “Sometimes I used to sit in the majlis of Sheikh Hamdan bin Rashid Al Maktoum, the deputy ruler of Dubai, and take his picture and turn it into a painting and show him. It one day dawned on the sheikh that I would never ask him for any money and he signed a paper, awarding me lakhs of rupees. I was extremely grateful because I needed the money for my son’s studies,” he says.
Shukla boasts of possessing over 2,000 undeveloped rolls containing photos that show how life in the UAE was 50 years ago.
In January 2020, Shukla was awarded UAE’s prestigious 10-year Golden Visa for long-term residency, which is awarded to non-Emiratis in different categories such as entrepreneurship, arts and other fields of excellence. Most of Shukla's immediate family is now in Dubai and the United States. He is proud of his son Neel, 53, who is a well-known art consultant and interior designer.
Shukla still makes it a point to shoot every day and is looking forward to turning 100. “That’s my goal… I got respect and love, what more do I need?”
THE ROYALS OF THE UAE
- After the discovery of oil in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi in the early 1960s, the seven UAE sheikdoms, which were known as the Trucial States, became unified
- Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan became the ruler of Abu Dhabi in 1966 and called for the unification that took place on December 2, 1971, and thus, the United Arab Emirates was formed. He then became the first president of the new country and is today known as the founding father of the UAE
- Sheikh Rashid bin Maktoum was the Ruler of Dubai at that time. Today his son Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid is the vice president and prime minister of UAE as well as the ruler
- Sheikh Khalid bin Mohammed Al Qasimi was the ruler of the Emirate of Sharjah when the UAE was formed. Today his son Sheikh Sultan bin Muhammad Al Qasimi enjoys the position
- Sheikh Saqr bin Mohammad Al Qassimi was the Ruler of Ras Al Khaimah when it became part of the UAE in 1971. Today it is ruled by Sheikh Saud bin Saqr Al Qasimi
- Sheikh Rashid bin Humaid Al Nuaimi III was the ninth ruler of the Emirate of Ajman. Today Sheikh Humaid bin Rashid Al Nuaimi III is the ruler
- The Emirate of Umm Al Quwain was ruled by Sheikh Ahmad bin Rashid Al Mualla in 1971. Today Sheikh Saud bin Rashid Al Mualla is the ruler
- Sheikh Mohammed bin Hamad Al Sharqi was the ruler of the seventh Emirate of Fujairah. Today Sheikh Hamad bin Mohammed Al Sharqi is the ruler
Produced by Vinay Arote/TIL
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