Máy, 19, and her first daughter, at her home in Sình Tủng Chứ village. At 13, Máy illegally went to China with other Hmong people in the same town, searching for work. There, she met a guy who later became her husband. Even though she was not interested in him, her birth parents agreed after he brought a large amount of dowry home and asked for Máy’s hand in marriage. In the North of Vietnam, some Hmong parents can not afford to feed many months in the family, so they marry their daughters early to reduce the financial burden. ©Nhan Tran

Between the Silent Eyes

Nhàn Tran

2024 — Vietnam

About this series

Between the Silent Eyes is an ongoing photographic documentation exploring the social cultural issues of the young Hmong women in Vietnam. 
The Hmong are one of 53 indigenous minority groups in Vietnam and primarily reside in the mountainous regions of North Vietnam. They traditionally lead an agrarian lifestyle, with many families earning a living by farming the land. Since the young Hmongs have fewer work opportunities due to their remote geography, they look for employment in big cities and countries, including China, which shares nearly 1350 km of Northern Vietnam’s land border. When they are on the move, they are vulnerable to unfair treatment, discrimination, and tracking of their movements. It does, however, change their worldview, especially for women and girls who had been seen as shouldering the brunt of domestic work and childcare in a patrilineal culture, without a voice in family decisions and few chances to travel outside their mountain communities.
My own life has taught me that the outside world cannot see inside you. Throughout this project, I aim to emphasize the importance of listening to and caring for underrepresented and vulnerable communities.

Hà Giang, Vietnam on January 23 2022. The Hmong village as the foggy season comes. © Nhan Tran
Dính,18, bathing her baby son. When Dính was 16, she fell pregnant by a 25-year-old Tày man - another minority group in Vietnam. They got married to ‘resolve pregnancy.’ Due to the conflict between their two cultures, her husband turned to violence and beat her. Dính then took her baby, left her husband, and moved to her sister’s nail salon, which is 150km away, for her safety. © Nhan Tran
Hà Giang, Vietnam on February 18 2022 H’mong people are on the bus to head to Bình Dương city (1700 km from their home) in search of work. Bình Dương is one of the two largest cities in South Vietnam. In recent years, thanks to the government’s open policy toward foreign investment, the city has become a dream destination for employees, of whom 85 percent are from other provinces and cities, including minority groups who belong to the low-income class, including Hmong people. They can be paid between 7 - 10 million VND monthly (~US$290 - ~$US450) depending on the workloads and overtime work. © Nhan Tran
Hà Giang, Vietnam on December 11 2021. Máy, 19, and her husband, Hầu Mí Dà, take rainwater for the whole family when the winter comes in Sình Tủng Chứ village. The quick transition between childhood and adulthood, lacking time to grow fully as an adult, exacerbates Hmong girls' children's diculties. They often bear birth till they can have a male child to continue their family lineage. Hmong girls becoming wives have fewer voices in the family amidst a patriarchal social system. © Nhan tran
Hà Giang, Vietnam on February 20 2022. Máy, 20, lying alone on the ground of her rented room in Bình Dương city. She is missing her children at home in Sình Tủng Chứ village. © Nhan Tran
Hà Giang, Vietnam on May 15 2022. Máy, 20, and a worker card. She works temporarily for a Chinese company Bình Dương city. Bình Dương is one of the two largest cities in South Vietnam. In recent years, thanks to the government’s open policy toward foreign investment, the city has become a dream destination for employees, of whom 85 percent are from other provinces and cities, including minority groups who belong to the low-income class, including Hmong people. They can be paid between 7 - 10 million VND monthly (~US$290 - ~$US450) depending on the workloads and overtime work. © Nhan Tran
Hà Giang, Vietnam on July 24 2020. Sinh, 19, watching her daughter before leaving to hang out with her friend, Dua. She shares that she didn’t have many opportunities to go outside with other friends after marrying because her husband supposed she would leave their family and no one would handle domesticity and subservience. Before she married oficially at 18, she and her husband lived together for over a year and gave birth at 17 . © Nhan Trần
Hà Giang, Vietnam on June 07 2021. Máy, 19, married 16, and her newborn at home in Sình Tủng Chứ village. “I feel the knives cutting my belly. In the operating room, the doctor injects painkillers and then operates. I’m afraid of the surgery. But you can’t die because of pain”, said Máy. “After seven days, I was allowed to go home. If I ate more, I would feel pain at the incision”, she said of her postpartum experience. Máy thinks that if she doesn’t leave the village to find a job, she will not be able to provide well for her children. She said she might not when asked if she would have another child. © Nhàn Tran
Hà Giang, Vietnam on Feburary 20 2022 Máy, 20, wearing the white mask in the right corner, and other Hmong mothers walking on the street, the first night they reach the city. © Nhàn Tran
Hà Giang, Vietnam on September 17 2023. Máy’s daughter, Mỷ, embraces the doll her Mom bought while napping. © Nhàn Tran

Photographer: Nhàn Tran
Nationality: Vietnamese
Based in: Hanoi / Hồ Chí Minh City, Vietnam
Website: www.nhantran.org
Instagram: @nhaantrann

Nhan Tran (Nhàn) is a Vietnamese documentary photographer and lmmaker based between Hanoi and Hồ Chí Minh City. Her work focuses on long-term stories, drawing attention to social issues, and advocating for equitable and sustainable development in her country. Nhan primarily focuses on minority groups, exploring themes of the human condition.
She has committed her works centered around the H’mong community in Vietnam contributing to a continuous archive of the H’mong of modern Vietnam. She diverse her storytelling tools by practicing lmmaking and visual arts.
She is a member of Women Photograph and Up Next Photographers, which is a part of Diversify Photo, Objectifs Documentary Award recipient, and National Geographic Society grantee.