Colette Mazabrard stands with some of her exhibits at Vertical Sleepers, a series of 64 black-and-white portraits of men in siesta. Picture by Sanjoy Chattopadhyaya

She?s a French national who has made Delhi her home for nine years. The Parisian came to the country as a teacher on a one-year contract.

Almost a decade later, she still prefers the Indian capital city to its French counterpart. But what caught Colette Mazabrard?s fancy the most was the ample opportunity and subject matter to capture on camera.

Her first exhibition, Vertical Sleepers, was inaugurated on June 18 at Seagull Arts and Media Resource Centre. Organised in collaboration with the French embassy in India, it will be on till July 5. The 64 black-and-white photographs are images of people taking afternoon naps on Delhi streets.

?It happened by chance. I was interested in portraits, and the first one I clicked was of a person who was asleep. I liked it so much that I decided to shoot a series,? explains the teacher in the French embassy?s school in Delhi.

The images are a collection of the young and the old caught in repose, but from different angles. ?For about a year, every Sunday afternoon, around 1.30, I would go to Old Delhi and catch people sleeping in public places. The fact that they are all men is just coincidence, because there were very few women sleeping in public places, and they were always covered from head to toe,? explains Mazabrard.

Although the 40-year-old has no plans to venture out with her camera in Calcutta, she?s glad her first exhibition is being held here. ?In Delhi, the exhibitions are mostly commercial. Here, people just come in to see the photographs.?

This, too, happened by chance. ?I wanted to publish a book of my pictures, so I wrote to Navin Kishore, since he?s a publisher. He said he didn?t have the funds for that, but would be happy to have an exhibition. So here I am,? she smiles.

The lady with a flair for languages ? French, English, Latin and a smattering of Hindi (?it?s very difficult to pronounce?) ? applied for a teaching position in India nine years ago, to see the world and broaden her horizons. Mazabrard hasn?t wanted to leave since. ?There?s so much to learn here,? she gushes.

But she?s ready to return. ?I have only gone back to see my family on holidays. Now I am going back for a year, to stay in the south of France. Otherwise it will be difficult for me to adjust when I have to finally return to France and live there. I will really miss Delhi,? says she.

For now, Mazabrard is basking in the glory of her first exhibition, camping in Calcutta for the entire duration. Next step ? to publish her novel.