These farmers lived and died in anonymity. We realised it is difficult to make people feel strongly for a cause they can’t associate a face to. So we decided to use their faces to reach out to the world.

We created their portraits using the very same object that had been their undoing – dry, burnt hay. Using actual photographs of 12 deceased farmers as a reference, every feature on their faces and every expression were captured and recreated using hundreds of dried hay pieces. This symbol of ruined crops became the canvas on which their faces came alive.

Apart from generation huge amount of awareness around the issue, The actual portraits were displayed at exhibitions and auctioned to the highest bidders. The money raised was distributed amongst their families.