Virus casts shadow over AP's pictures of the year in Asia
The year of the virus.
From sports to festivals, natural disasters to protests, hardly a moment of 2020 captured by the photojournalists of The Associated Press in Asia was free of the specter of the disease that rampaged first across the region, and then the world.
Take, for instance, a picture from mid-January, before the pandemic gained regional traction, of a Hindu pilgrim in the water near where the Ganges empties into the Bay of Bengal. There is a peaceful timelessness as the man stretches out a hand toward a glowing sun that hovers like a suspended orange ball just above the watery horizon; this could be from a century ago, a millennium, even. Looking back at it 11 months later, however, after the widespread misery and death that followed, it's hard to shake a lingering feeling of foreboding.
Many of these images capture not only what those experiencing an extraordinary moment must have felt; they also carry a sense of the universal, of a shared flash of understanding in an otherwise bewildering and brutal year, regardless of how specific or individual the circumstances of each picture might be.
Japanese cheerleaders are caught mid-dance, frozen in a kinetic burst of choreography and energy, pompoms flashing, hair streaming _ before empty baseball stands. A little Nepalese girl is the focus of intense attention as she stands masked, her hands raised above her head, her eyes closed in a grimace, and is sprayed with disinfectant by men in head-to-toe protective gear. An Indonesian bride’s latex-gloved finger receives a ring from her latex-gloved groom.
Throughout, there’s a unifying unease: the visceral fear of illness; the sometimes futile, sometimes surreal measures taken to keep an invisible foe at bay; the prevalence of objects that divide people from each other _ masks, gloves, protective clothing and barriers of all sorts.
It would be a mistake, however, to assume that amid so much turmoil, there was no beauty. AP photographers found poignant episodes of daily life that may illuminate as much about the people living in this massive, diverse region as any pictures of misery or discord.
Dozens of homes in a Mumbai slum are lit up in the black of night with bursts of glaring electricity during celebrations for Diwali, the Hindu festival of lights, each sparkling scene etching a slice of life as compelling as an old still-life painting. A man in the Philippines lounges in a hammock strung in the trees over the tops of tombs in a deserted cemetery.
Even that most humdrum of activities _ the selfie _ operated under the shadow of the virus. In a picture of two masked women taking a shot of themselves in front of some Olympic rings in Tokyo, it is impossible not to remember that the world’s premier sporting event was canceled by the virus _ and, as we enter a new year, the games still hang, along with much of what we once considered normal, in the balance for next summer, too.
Indian Hindu pilgrims walk through a pontoon bridge before dawn at Sangam, the confluence of rivers Ganges, Yamuna, and mythical Saraswati during Magh Mela, a festival that attracts millions of pilgrims every year, in Prayagraj, in the northern Indian state of Uttar Pradesh on Jan. 30, 2020. (AP Photo/Altaf Qadri)
Camel mounted soldiers stand in formation during rehearsals for the upcoming Beating Retreat ceremony at Raisina hill which houses India's most important ministries and the presidential palace in in New Delhi, India, on Jan. 24, 2020. (AP Photo/Altaf Qadri)
Indian school children perform yoga during the inauguration of an international kite festival in Ahmadabad, India, on Jan. 7, 2020. (AP Photo/Ajit Solanki, File)
Government officials throw flowers from a helicopter onto thousands of Hindu devotees performing rituals at Sangam, the confluence of three sacred rivers - the Yamuna, the Ganges and the mythical Saraswati - on Mauni Amavsya, or the new moon day, the most auspicious day during the annual month long Hindu religious fair "Magh Mela" in Prayagraj, India, on Jan. 24, 2020. (AP Photo/Rajesh Kumar Singh)
People watch as Taal Volcano erupts in Tagaytay, Cavite province, outside Manila, Philippines, on Jan. 12, 2020. (AP Photo/Aaron Favila)
Police in riot gear sprays pepper spray at a man as they disperse a crowd during a demonstration against "parallel traders" who buy goods in Hong Kong to resell in mainland China in Sheung Shui near the Chinese border in Hong Kong on Jan. 5, 2020. (AP Photo/Andy Wong, File)
A resident cleans his house from volcanic ash spewed from Taal Volcano at Laurel, Batangas province, southern Philippines, on Jan. 14, 2020. (AP Photo/Aaron Favila)
A firefighter covers his face from smoke as he battles a fire near Bendalong, Australia, Jan. 3, 2020. (AP Photo/Rick Rycroft)
Switzerland's Roger Federer makes a forehand return to Tennys Sandgren of the U.S. during their quarterfinal match at the Australian Open tennis championship in Melbourne, Australia, on Jan. 28, 2020. (AP Photo/Andy Wong)
CiCi Bellis of the U.S. makes a backhand return to Belgium's Elise Mertens during their third round singles match at the Australian Open tennis championship in Melbourne, Australia, on Jan. 25, 2020. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)
A woman reacts to seeing her relative receiving emergency care in a hospital following a mass shooting in Korat, Nakhon Ratchasima, Thailand, on Feb. 9, 2020. (AP Photo/Gemunu Amarasinghe)
A passenger shows a note from the World Dream cruise ship docked at Kai Tak cruise terminal under quarantine in Hong Kong on Feb. 5, 2020. (AP Photo/Vincent Yu)
A man watches the MS Westerdam, owned by Holland America Line, anchored off the port of Sihanoukville, Cambodia, on Feb. 14, 2020 after being long stranded at sea by virus fears. (AP Photo/Heng Sinith)
U.S. President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump tour the Taj Mahal, a 17th century monument to love in Agra, India, on Feb. 24, 2020. (AP Photo/Rajesh Kumar Singh)
Two women take a selfie with the Olympic rings in the background in the Odaiba section of Tokyo on March 12, 2020. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)
People clap from balconies in show of appreciation to health care workers at a Chawl in Mumbai, India, on March 22, 2020.(AP Photo/Rafiq Maqbool)
Police subdue hostage taker Alchie Paray, center, as he speaks to the waiting media shortly after releasing all his hostages at the V-Mall in Manila, Philippines, on March 2, 2020. (AP Photo/Aaron Favila)
A woman's hair is smeared with colored powder during celebrations marking the Holi festival in Mumbai, India, on March 10, 2020. (AP Photo/Rajanish Kakade)
Nepalese boxer Pratisha Aryal gets ready for her bout during a boxing match organized to mark International Women's Day in Kathmandu, Nepal, on March 8, 2020. (AP Photo/Niranjan Shrestha)
A man takes pictures of cherry blossoms at a shrine as snow falls in Tokyo on March 29, 2020. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)
A worker disinfects an area for processing passengers arriving from outside China at the train station in Wuhan in central China's Hubei province on March 29, 2020. (AP Photo/Ng Han Guan)
A woman takes a COVID-19 test at a quarantine hotel in Wuhan in central China's Hubei province on Tuesday, March 31, 2020. China on Tuesday reported just one new death from the coronavirus and a few dozen new cases, claiming that all new cases came from overseas. (AP Photo/Ng Han Guan)
Army soldiers wearing protective suits spray disinfectant as a precaution against the coronavirus at a shopping street in Seoul, South Korea, on March 4, 2020. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon)
A civic worker sprays disinfectant on beds at a special temporary hospital facility for COVID-19 patients in Mumbai, India, on April 10, 2020. (AP Photo/Rajanish Kakade)
Applicants sit for the written examination while maintaining social distancing as precaution against the coronavirus during an insurance planner qualification exam in Seoul, South Korea, on April 25, 2020. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)
A health worker wearing a protective suit disinfects inside a portable tent beside a street at the Gat Andres Bonifacio Memorial Medical Center during an enhanced community quarantine to prevent the spread of the coronavirus in Manila, Philippines, on April 27, 2020. (AP Photo/Aaron Favila)
A vendor hands over grocery to another across barriers used to seal off a neighborhood to help curb the spread of the coronavirus in Wuhan, China, on April 3, 2020. (AP Photo/Ng Han Guan)
A young Nepalese girl is sprayed with disinfectants as she arrives to get free food distributed by social workers during lockdown to control the spread of the coronavirus in Kathmandu, Nepal, on May 3, 2020. (AP Photo/Niranjan Shrestha)
Barrel of a gun belonging to an Indian paramilitary soldier is seen between partially closed doors of an armored vehicle as they drive towards the site of an operation in Awantipora area, south of Srinagar, Indian-controlled Kashmir, on May 6, 2020. (AP Photo/Dar Yasin)
Chinese President Xi Jinping, bottom, arrives for the closing session of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on May 27, 2020. (AP Photo/Andy Wong)
Pro-China supporter holds a Chinese national flag during a rally to celebrate the approval of a national security law for Hong Kong, in Hong Kong, on June 30, 2020. (AP Photo/Kin Cheung)
Local fisherman help ethnic-Rohingya people on a wooden boat as they arrive on Lancok Beach, North Aceh, Indonesia, on June 25, 2020. (AP Photo/Zik Maulana)
Muslim men pray spaced apart amid concerns of coronavirus outbreak during Friday prayers at At-Tin mosque in Jakarta, Indonesia, on June 5, 2020. (AP Photo/Achmad Ibrahim)
An Indian family dressed in personnel protective suits to protect against the coronavirus walk towards security gates after checking in their baggage at Kempegowda International Airport in Bengaluru, India, on June 2, 2020. (AP Photo/Aijaz Rahi)
Wearing latex gloves to prevent the spread of the coronavirus, bride Elma Diyani, right, and groom Octavianus Kristianto exchange rings during their wedding ceremony at the local Religious Affairs Office in Pamulang, on the outskirts of Jakarta, Indonesia, on June 19, 2020. (AP Photo/Tatan Syuflana)
A health worker takes a nasal swab of a person for a COVID-19 test at a hospital in New Delhi, India, on July 6, 2020. (AP Photo/Manish Swarup)
A teacher and students, wearing hats designed for space keeper, practice social distancing to help curb the spread of the coronavirus at Ban Pa Muad School in Chiang Mai, north of Thailand, on July 3, 2020. (AP Photo/Wichai Taprieu)
Staff members wearing face masks demonstrate safety measures to the media as the massage spa plans for reopening in Hong Kong on Sept. 17, 2020. (AP Photo/Kin Cheung)
An Indian boy cries as a medical worker prepares to collect his swab sample for COVID-19 test at a rural health centre in Bagli, outskirts of Dharmsala, India, on Sept. 7, 2020. (AP Photo/Ashwini Bhatia)
A woman wearing white protective gear, foreground, mourns after taking a glimpse of her husband's body, a victim of COVID 19, at a cremation site in Gauhati, India, on Sept. 10, 2020. (AP Photo/Anupam Nath)
Attendees wearing face masks watch an event to honor some of those involved in China’s fight against COVID-19 at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on Sept. 8, 2020. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)
A female wild elephant is covered with lime and salt before it is buried in Rani reserve forest, on the outskirts of Gauhati, India, on Sept. 26, 2020. (AP Photo/Anupam Nath)
Japan's outgoing Prime Minister Shinzo Abe waves as he leaves the prime minister's office in Tokyo on Sept. 16, 2020 after Abe and his Cabinet resigned. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)
A man is rescued from the debris after a four-story residential building collapsed in Bhiwandi in Thane district, a suburb of Mumbai, India, on Sept. 21, 2020. A four-story residential building that was due for repairs has collapsed in central India. (AP Photo/Praful Gangurde)
Protesters add a bicycle to a burning metro station during a rally, opposing a new law they say will cripple labor rights and harm the environment, in Jakarta, Indonesia, on Oct. 8, 2020. (AP Photo/Achmad Ibrahim)
A police officer fires his tear gas launcher during a protest against a controversial bill on job creation in Jakarta, Indonesia, on Oct. 8, 2020. (AP Photo/Dita Alangkara)
Amid tear gas clouds, plainclothes police officers detain protesters during a rally in Jakarta, Indonesia, on Oct. 8, 2020. (AP Photo/Tatan Syuflana)
Pro-democracy activists wave mobile phones with lights during a demonstration at Kaset intersection, suburbs of Bangkok, Thailand, on Oct. 19, 2020. (AP Photo/Sakchai Lalit)
Police arrest activist Jatupat Boonpattararaksa near the Democracy Monument during anti-government rally in Bangkok, Thailand, on Oct. 13, 2020. (AP Photo)
Kashmiri villagers comfort the grieving sister of Umar Hajam, a member of India's ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), in Qazigund, south of Srinagar, Indian-controlled Kashmir on Oct. 30, 2020. (AP Photo/Dar Yasin)
A woman reacts as police detain activists protesting against gang rape and killing of a woman in India's northern state of Uttar Pradesh during a protest in New Delhi, India, on Oct. 1, 2020. (AP Photo/Manish Swarup)
An Indian fisherman fixes his fishing net sitting on a country boat on the outskirts of Gauhati, India, on Oct. 14, 2020. (AP Photo/Anupam Nath)
Nepalese devotees wearing protective gear as a precautionary measure against the coronavirus carry the chariot during Pachali Bhairav festival in Kathmandu, Nepal, on Oct. 21, 2020. (AP Photo/Niranjan Shrestha)
Soldiers wearing face masks to help curb the spread of the coronavirus, rally to welcome the 8th Congress of the Workers' Party of Korea at Kim Il Sung Square in Pyongyang, North Korea, on Oct. 12, 2020. (AP Photo/Jon Chol Jin)
A man undergoes a free COVID-19 swab test at a slum area in Manila, Philippines, on Oct. 6, 2020. (AP Photo/Aaron Favila)
A man who lives inside Manila’s North Cemetery, Philippines, relaxes on his hammock on top of tombs as only a few people visit their departed on Oct. 28, 2020. (AP Photo/Aaron Favila)
A man checks his mobile phone as he sits amid physical distancing markers prior to the start of a movie at CGV Cinemas theater in Jakarta, Indonesia, Friday, Oct. 23, 2020. The cinema reopened this week after months of closure due to coronavirus outbreak. (AP Photo/Tatan Syuflana)
New Zealand's Jordie Barrett, left, scores his team's second try as Australia's Nic White attempts a tackle during the second Bledisloe Rugby test between the All Blacks and the Wallabies at Eden Park in Auckland, New Zealand, on Oct. 18, 2020. (AP Photo/Mark Baker)
King Maha Vajiralongkorn, center left, and Queen Suthida, center right, wave while meeting with thousands of adoring supporters in Bangkok, Thailand, on Nov. 1, 2020. (AP Photo/Wason Wanichakorn)
A slum colony is decorated with lanterns and lights as they celebrate Diwali, the Hindu festival of lights, in Mumbai, India, on Nov. 13, 2020. (AP Photo/Rafiq Maqbool)
Residents push baby strollers full of belongings they retrieved from their damaged homes at their village damaged by Typhoon Vamco in Rodriguez, Rizal province, Philippines, on Nov. 17, 2020. (AP Photo/Aaron Favila)
Villagers prepare placards featuring U.S. democratic vice presidential candidate Sen. Kamala Harris as they prepare to celebrate should the Democratic Party win the presidential elections, in Painganadu a neighboring village of Thulasendrapuram, south of Chennai, Tamil Nadu state, India, on Nov. 6, 2020. (AP Photo/Aijaz Rahi)
A cormorant bird rests on a branch in a wetland at sunset on the outskirts of Gauhati, India, on Nov. 5, 2020. (AP Photo/Anupam Nath)