The face of death
(Above) Nimesh Dave: An injured passenger lay on the tracks in a state of shock, outside the first class compartment of the train that was ripped apart by a bomb blast at Matunga on July 11. MiD DAY photographer Nimesh Dave, who was onboard the same train, said, I was in the train too. At first none of us realised what had happened. People were just running, jumping out of the train, it was chaos. Only after the smoke subsided did we realise that it was a bomb blast. The coach was torn open with dead bodies strewn everywhere. A man lying on the tracks was badly injured. His face had such a deathly expression.

A drowning mans last straw
(Right) Atul Kamble: The night before the TADA court judgment date, Sanjay Dutt went around Mumbai visiting all religious places. After praying he returned home at 10.30 pm, when this picture was shot.

Return of the queen
Nimesh Dave: One happy family in one frame marked Madhuri Dixits return to Bollywood. While Dr Sriram Nene with the two children, Arin and Ryan, walked out of the Sahar Airport first, Madhuri followed later. Bollywoods sweetheart agreed to the photographers request to come closer together for a picture with a beautiful smile.

Don ka photo lena mushkil hi nahin, Namumkin hai
Sayed Sameer Abedi: The funeral of Danish Ibrahim, nephew of Dawood Ibrahim, who died in a car accident at Madgaon, at his Nagpada home. The atmosphere was tense and hostile. The press was beaten up, their cameras broken and police refused to help because they had orders from above. MiD DAY photographer Sayed Sameer Abedi approached people who lived in the surrounding buildings to let him get a shot of the funeral procession below. Most refused out of fear. One man, apparently from another gang, invited him in. They sat with lights switched off and the photographer got a shot, without a flash of course. The man then helped Abedi get out of the area safely.

Sneak peek
(Above) Shadab Khan: West Indies cricket players Carlton Baugh (left) with Chris Gayle (right) and Marlon Samuels coming out of Enigma, JW Marriott, Juhu at 3 am. After losing the day's match, they sneaked out of their hotels to go out and have a good time. They ref Gotcha!
(Left) Mukesh Parpiani: Sarangi Mahajan, wife of Pravin Mahajan, coming out of Arthur Road Jail after meeting her husband. This was the first time she was captured on camera after the incident in April 2006. After a hundred-day vigil, missing her several times, MiD DAYs photo editor Mukesh Parpiani finally got this picture of her. Strike a pose
Pradeep Dhivar: A MiD DAY investigative story exposed how easy it is to become a page 3 celeb. Law student Renny Jhaveri, seen here with Preity Zinta at the Dr S C Jain Derby, was made into a socialite over a period of eight weeks all with the help of some schmoozing and shock tactics. Upside inside out
Rane Ashish: Police commissioner AN Roy wore the National Flag upside down at a blood donation camp organised by Raza Academy. For 25 minutes, Roy's flag remained upside down, until he finally realised his mistake. When we asked him, he denied the whole thing despite photographic evidence. Spit of fire
Vishal Kelkar: Congress councillor Dharmesh Vyas spat paan from the BMC building at CST an hour after the BMC passed a by-law making spitting an offence. MiD DAY photographer Vishal Kelkar kept a vigil outside BMC headquarters for an hour and a half before getting his shot. When asked, Vyas said he was eating chewing gum. High and dry
(above) Sameer Markande: Rahul Mahajan being lifted by Delhi Police and taken away from the Patiala House Court in New Delhi after he was remanded to two days of police custody. Surprise party
(right) Atul Kamble: State Minister of Animal Husbandry Anis Ahmed makes a surprise visit of the slaughterhouse at Deonar. The minister came unannounced in his official car, without any other security cars. He was stopped at the gate but quickly let past and a 45-minute thorough inspection followed. Living on a prayer
Mandar Deodhar: The rich and famous love visiting Siddhivinayak temple. We caught up with steel-baron Laxmi Mittal and wife Usha, along with Murli Deora, paying homage to the gods that made him a multi-billionaire. The couple spent seven to 10 minutes at the temple and managed to skip the queue that's always waiting for darshan. Black Beauty
A troupe of stars was leaving for London on a British Airways flight for a show. When Mallika Sherawats Mercedes pulled up, MiD DAY photographer Rane Ashish positioned himself, only to find Sherawat dressed to the nines in a burkha. The actress claimed that she would have been hounded had she not come disguised. The men around her threatened to break the camera but he got the picture all the same. Dhoni in the pool
(left) MiD DAY photographer Suresh K K caught M S Dhoni, Suresh Raina, Romesh Pawar and Zaheer Khan playing volley ball in a swimming pool during the Indian team's pool session at the Team Hotel Pearl Continental in Lahore. The burning train
(Right) Sameer Markande: RPI activists burn the local train near Ulhasnagar Station after the idol of Baba Saheb Ambedkar was damaged in Kanpur. Mehendi laga ke rakhna
Vishal Kelkar: When Rahul Mahajan married Shweta Singh, MiD DAY was the only newspaper allowed to the mehndi ceremony a day before the wedding. The couple had booked three rooms at Taj Land's End, Bandra for family and close friends. The photo shows Rahul admiring the colour on Shweta's hand and trying to find his name hidden in the mehndi pattern. My daddy Strongest
(Below) Shadab Khan: Tennis player Leander Paes on his way in to Bombay at Sahar Airport with wife Rhea Pillai and daughter Aiyana. Sreesanth takes a chill pill
Suresh KK: Indias new hero Sreesanth and Suresh Raina killed time listening to music as M S Dhoni relaxed nearby at the Lahore airport en route to Multan. Their flight was delayed by two hours due to bad weather condition and our cricketers used the time to unwind. Jail House rocker
Mukesh Parpiani: Swati Sathe, Superintendent of Arthur Road Jail, captured in a moment of thought. Inspite of so much pressure, shes one woman who keeps her cool, said MiD DAYs photo editor Mukesh Parpiani. Training ground
(above) Mandar Deodhar: After taking three hours by road to get to Dombivli to inaugurate a mall, deputy Chief Minister R.R. Patil decided to take the train back home. We were the only ones who snapped him getting off at CST. Wedding woes
(right) Pradeep Dhivar: An exclusive first picture of Abhijeet Sawant and his fiance Shilpa at the airport before Sawant left for his US tour with Himesh Reshammiya. The minute Sawant noticed MiD DAY photographer Dhivar, he distanced himself from his fiance. Sawant initially denied reports but the engagement was confirmed through neighbours and friends. Destinys child
(top right) Sayed Sameer Abedi: Tada Court Justice Pramod Kode photographed for the first time. Few people knew how the man who was deciding the fate of so many looked like. At a flag hoisting ceremony at the High Court, on August 15, 2006, Kode finally revealed himself.