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Explore Newborn PhotographyNaming Ceremony & Barsa Photography in Kharadi
Barsa, cradle ceremonies and naming rituals in Kharadi homes — usually with some of the family in the room and the rest watching from another state.
How these actually run now
The priest is in the room. Half the elders are on a phone propped against a cushion.
This is the ceremony most changed by families living far from home, and pretending otherwise makes for dishonest photographs.
The ritual is unchanged — the name whispered in the baby’s ear, the cradle rocked, the blessings. What has changed is who can be there, and for a lot of Kharadi families that means a laptop on a chair with a grandmother watching from the other end.
Families are often unsure whether they want that photographed. Our view is that they usually should: in twenty years the screen in the corner will be the detail that explains where this family was living and what it cost them, and cropping it out makes the album less true rather than more elegant.
The practical side is unchanged from any home ceremony. It is early, the room is full, the moments are quick, and there is no second take. We arrive before the preparation rather than before the ritual.
This is the ceremony most changed by families living far from home, and it is worth being honest about that rather than photographing around it. The name is whispered, the cradle is rocked, and a grandmother watches from a laptop on a chair.
Our view is that the screen belongs in the album. In twenty years it explains where this family was living and what that cost them, and cropping it out makes the record less true rather than more elegant.
The remote-family question is worth settling before the morning rather than during it. Whether the screen belongs in the photographs is a decision only the family can make, and it is easier made calmly.
Early ceremonies also mean unusually good light. Morning sun through a flat window is the best light these rooms get all day, and it is worth using rather than switching on the ceiling lights.
Family photographs afterwards are the part most often lost. Everyone is present, dressed and in one place for about fifteen minutes, and then people start leaving.
Getting ready
A ceremony with people on a screen
Set up the call before the muhurat, not during it. A connection being established while the priest is waiting is the most avoidable disruption at these ceremonies.
Put the screen somewhere it can be seen and photographed without being in the middle of the ritual. A chair at the side works; propped against the cradle does not.
Lay out everything the ritual needs the evening before. An early muhurat leaves no room for anyone to be looking for something at six in the morning.
Planning it
What we plan around
The muhurat and what time preparation starts, because we want to be there for the second rather than the first.
Who is present and who is remote, so the group photographs afterwards can include both in whatever way you want.
And whether you want the remote family photographed. Some families do and some would rather not, and it is far better asked than assumed.
Recent work
From the studio
A selection of recent photographs. Each one is tagged with the kind of shoot it came from — tell us what you are planning and we will show you the work closest to it.
Also booked nearby
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A long ceremony, photographed without getting in the middle of it.
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Naming ceremonies in Kharadi
How the session itself works is covered in full on the main naming ceremony photography page.
- 1st Floor, Behind G S Mahanagar Co-op Bank Ltd, Sai Nagari, Mathura Nagar, Wadgaon Sheri, Pune, Maharashtra 411014
- +91 79032 43332
Family are joining by video call. Should that be in the photographs?
Your call entirely, and we will do it either way. Our suggestion is yes — it is a true record of how the ceremony actually happened, and families are usually glad of it later.
Our ceremony starts very early.
Normal for this ritual and we plan for it. Tell us the muhurat and we will agree an arrival that gets us there before the preparation, not just before the ceremony.
Will you use flash near the baby?
Kept minimal, and we work with the room where we can. A ceremony is not a photoshoot and nobody wants a newborn startled for a frame.
Which areas near Kharadi do you cover?
Kharadi, Wadgaon Sheri, Viman Nagar, Keshav Nagar, Mundhwa, Chandan Nagar and Vishrantwadi, and ceremonies across Pune.
Family are joining by video call. Should that be photographed?
Your call, and we will do it either way. Our suggestion is yes — it is a true record of how the ceremony actually happened.
The ceremony is very early.
Normal for this ritual. Tell us the muhurat and we will agree an arrival that covers the preparation too.
Can we do family photographs afterwards?
Yes, and straight after the ritual rather than after the meal, while everyone is still present.
How long does the ceremony usually take?
Shorter than families expect, which is why arriving before the preparation matters more than arriving before the ritual.
Can we have family photographs afterwards?
Yes, and straight after rather than after the meal, while everyone is still present and dressed.
Do you know the sequence of a Barsa?
Yes. Knowing what comes next is what lets us be in position rather than reacting.
Do you photograph the meal and guests?
If you want it covered, yes. Tell us how much of the morning you want documented.
Do you photograph the priest and ritual items?
Yes, if the family is comfortable. Ask beforehand rather than assuming.
Can we do a short newborn sitting the same day?
Possible, but usually better separately. The ceremony is long enough that a baby has little left afterwards.
Our parents will join by video call.
Increasingly common. Decide where the screen goes beforehand and whether it should appear in the photographs.
We are arranging this ourselves for the first time.
Then tell us the muhurat and roughly how many people, and we will take it from there.
Tell us the muhurat
And whether family are joining remotely. Both change how we plan the morning.