ON HIS first trip to Mumbai, Australian photographer Sam Phelps immediately found his subject on the streets.

Not the stereotypical images of ageing men with hand-drawn carts, dabbawallas or urchins. Phelps was moved by the sight of a band of firemen hauling a tree felled by a heavy downpour.

This image of courage convinced him that Mumbai’s firemen would make for an interesting muse.

In August 2007, Phelps starting documenting his experiences at the Colaba, Byculla and Wadala fire stations making friends, riding to emergency sites and working on his exhibition of portraits.

“I wanted to start here on my first self-assigned photojournalism project. Watching these men working on a collapsed tree was like cinema. The topic consumed me.” Phelps was interested to note how in a rapidly evolving India the Mumbai fire brigade evoked a sense of nostalgia as it continued to function like the London fire brigade of the 1890s. “There are young edu cated recruits who are happy in this challenging job. They are ordinary people with immense courage and yet no one knows their identity. They are indispensable and yet they work in the shadows.” An Arts graduate with experience in fashion photography and advertising, Phelps wanted to make a career in photojournalism.

“I’ve collected notes by way of loose reportage which I will probably compile into a book. The photo exhibition was easier to execute but I really want to understand the news media aesthetic,” said Phelps.

For the exhibition, Phelps has done a series of structured portraits in black and white. A deliberately meditative and formal hand printed collection intended to be commemorative.

“Outside of their working lives I got to know the younger English-speaking recruits socially. They get a stable income that’s twice as large as that of the police force. They choose this job because it’s respectful. To be pulling bodies out of rubble and saving lives daily is a test of their endurance, but these are the only challenges they are willing to talk about. They are tight-lipped about any possible grievances within the organisation.” Phelps believes that unlike in the West where firemen enjoy public approval, here the firefighter’s role remains utilitarian and his identity anonymous.

(The Mumbai Fire Brigade Portraits will be on display at the Piramal Gallery, NCPA, Nariman Point from August 21 to 30)