Delhi Photo Festival: Personal Stories

This series of images are self-explorations on the part of the photographers, speaking of personal experiences that have affected them deeply. These stories find a universal resonance in all our lives. 

Anonymous 



In 'Anonymous' I used stand-ins for self portraits, which allowed me to step outside of myself. The nameless women silently speak for me and they become me in a universal sense; I think it might be easier to reveal our deeper truths anonymously. In essence these photographs are emotion portraits, and by stepping away from my individuality I feel it invites the viewer to engage themselves in the mystery of their own truths, and to contemplate how the emotions depicted resonate in their own lives.

L’Ailleurs de l’Autre (The Elsewhere of the Other) 



'The Elsewhere of the Other' is an example of photographic research, conducted during three trips- Australia in 2009, India in 2010 and Japan in 2012. But really, the place or time hardly matters- the subject of this research being invisible. The elsewhere of the other in oneself. The elsewhere of a beloved man who has died and his soul and the hereafter. The elsewhere of another adored man who is gone, his territories and his visions. The elsewhere of the other would be the powerful ability that all of us have to be reborn, to rebuild, and to give. These photographs are those of a woman with an unvanquished heart.

Ram Aur Shyam 



Kannagi Khanna grew up hearing her grandfather’s unfulfilled story of wanting to become an actor and joining Bollywood. This played a significant role in her childhood. Dreams never die; they remain with you forever as faded or forgotten fantasies. 'Ram and Shyam' captures one man’s story and dream and its effect on his granddaughter.

A Memoir 



About a year ago, Vishal found his mother’s vanity box, which contained hairclips along with some of her other belongings. The process of photographing her hairclips made him feel her lost presence in his life. These photographs are his requiescat for her. 

A Letter 



Lipika – the woman who is going to be the mother of my child. I call her Girgiti. We met 8 years back in college. We fell in love and ran away from our family since they were not supportive due to us being from different religions. From then on, we have passed many difficult times full of uncertainty, fear and complexity. But we have managed to stay together. Those days have gone. Recently, my family accepted her. We are married and she is going to have a baby. Everything is going all right, but still there is this feeling of fear that I can’t escape.

Wish You Live Long 



'Wish You Live Long' is a personal journey into a landscape that crisscrosses issues of identity and family, political borders and cultural landscape, current day crisis and the history of Kashmir.