Bhumika Saraswati

Heat is rising temperatures; but it isn't just that. It is also a metaphor for a simmering rage, born from generations of subjugation. Women, especially those of us deemed ‘untouchable’ and outcast, have felt this heat intimately. Stories of Dalit and Adivasi women—two communities marginalized within and oppressed by the rigid caste system—intersect in their shared struggle against systemic violence and exclusion. Though these women are crucial to our food systems and ecological balance, they remain underrepresented in climate discourse and in almost every other phase of life in India. I photograph to bear witness to their resilience - in protests, agricultural fields, and forests. These photographs are evidence of a lived reality that is too often overlooked, capturing the quiet power and fierce spirit of those at the forefront and intersection of caste, gender, and climate injustice. Each photograph becomes part of an archive—a testament to a reality that, no matter how systematically hidden, insists on being witnessed and respected.