Group of Musicians and Nautch Girl - Circa 1860s

Group portrait of two men and three young women. Each of the men is holding a musical instrument, while one of the women is adorned with many pieces of jewelry.
Source: getty.edu

Studio Portrait of a Man as a Bearer, or a Head Servant - Circa 1860s

Studio portrait of a man as a bearer, or a head servant, holding a piece of cloth. He stands next to a desk, while a vanity with a mirror can be seen on the right area of the image.
Source: getty.edu

Studio Portrait of a Man as a Mehtar, or a Sweeper - Circa 1860s

Studio portrait of a man as a mehtar, or a sweeper, holding a broomstick. He stands next to a desk and some paper trash scattered on the floor.
Source: getty.edu

Kitmutgar or a Male Waiter - Circa 1860s

Studio portrait of a Caucasian man seated at a table and holding a piece of bread. A native man stands next to him, holding a bottle of ale, depicting the role of a kitmutgar or a male waiter.

Studio portrait of a man as a kitmutgar or a male waiter. He stands next to a table and appears as if he is preparing a cup of tea.
Source:getty.edu

Group of Native Servants - Circa 1860s

Group portrait of a number of men in front of a building. Each man appears to be responsible for different domestic duties, holding various objects such as a clay pitcher, an iron, and gardening tools.
getty.edu

Hill Coolies - Circa 1860s

Studio portrait of two men, barefooted and each wearing a piece of cloth that is fastened with knots.
Source: getty.edu

Group of Cooli Women - Circa 1860s

Group portrait of three women, one of whom is sitting down on the floor while holding a rattan basket. Each of them has in her possession a round, cushion-like object.
Source: getty.edu

Studio Portrait of a Postman - Circa 1860s

Studio portrait of a man dressed in traditional garments and holding a piece of paper in one hand and a bamboo stick in the other.
Source: getty.edu

Studio portrait of Two Men with Cooking Utensils and Ingredients - Circa 1860s

Studio portrait of two men with cooking utensils and ingredients. One of the men appears to be smoking a hookah.
Source: getty.edu

Studio Portrait of a Man as a Dhobi, or a Washerman, Ironing a Piece of Fabric - Circa 1860s

Source:getty.edu

Studio portrait of a Man as a Mistri, or a Carpenter - Circa 1860s

Studio portrait of a man as a mistri, or a carpenter, with a saw, some lumber, and other carpentry tools next to him.
Source: getty.edu

Studio Portrait of Man as a Bhisti, or a Water Carrier - Circa 1860s

Studio portrait of man as a bhisti, or a water carrier, standing with a mussock or goat-skin bag slung on his side. A water basin and a few clay vessels are visible on the floor.
Source: getty.edu

Street Scene, Bombay (Mumbai) - Circa 1870s - 1880s

Source: getty.edu

Indian People Waiting on a Railway Station Platform - 1945

Photographer: N. Herfort
Source: https://collection.sl.nsw.gov.au

The Planting & Manufacture of Indigo in India by French photographer Oscar Mallitte - Allahabad, 1877

Indigo planting in Bengal started around 1777. Indigo planting became more and more commercially profitable due to the demand for blue dye in Europe. It was introduced in large parts of eastern India. The indigo planters mercilessly pursued the peasants to plant indigo instead of food crops. They provided loans, called dadon at a very high interest. Once a farmer took such loans he remained in debt for whole of his life before passing it to his successors. The price paid by the planters was meagre,only 2.5% of the market price. The farmers could make no profit growing indigo. The farmers were totally unprotected from the brutal indigo planters, who resorted to mortgages or destruction of their property if they were unwilling to obey them. Government rules favoured the planters. By an act in 1833, the planters were granted a free hand in oppression. Even the zamindars, money lenders and other influential persons sided with the planters. Out of the severe oppression unleashed on them the farmers resorted to revolt.

Know more about Indigo Revolt in Wikipeida

 

Planter's Bungalow

"Luggie" (measuring lands for cultivation)

"Tumnie" (turning up lands)

Sowing with drills

Cutting Indigo plant in the field and Loading Carts

Indigo factory (Loading the Vats)

Loading a vat with plant

Indigo factory (beating the Vats)

Beating a vat by hand

Beating by Machinery

Apparatus for beating by machinery

Indigo boilers and fecula table

Press house

Pumping the fecula into boilers

Pressing the fecula

Drying house (Indigo cakes on Shelves)

Cutting Indigo into Cakes

Bailing water in time of drought

Persian Wheel

Group of Indigo beaters

Digital image courtesy of the Getty's Open Content Program.

Bangalore Street Scene - c1910

Source: ebay

A girl in the village of Bachhai, India - 1955

Photographs taken by United Nations

This is a neat photo of a girl in the village of Bachhai, India, in 1955. The caption talks about a development project around the Damodar river system.

Source: ebay.com

Streets of Old Delhi - 1954

The following pictures were made by Rodney Stich in 1954 in Old Delhi, India, while the plane was being loaded with 1600 monkeys to be flown to the United States for the Salk polio vaccine program.







Source

Indian Beggars 1940

A Group of Indian beggars. 1940

Young Naga Tribespeople

Young Naga Tribespeople armed with swords and shields.