If you are an amateur photographer shooting pictures by the dozen, processing and posting them on social networks with the hope of getting some insightful feedback that goes beyond a number of ‘likes’, Indian Photography Festival 2015 would be of help. The first of its kind event will be held in the city from October 1 to 10 across 16 venues.
The IPF will feature a number of exhibitions showcasing photography collections across genres and will have established lensmen and women from India and other countries interacting with enthusiasts at seminars and panel discussions, conduct photo walks, workshops and master classes.
Festival director Aquin Mathews, having visited a few international photography festivals, felt the need to initiate something similar in Hyderabad. Aquin is helped by photographers Chandrasekhar Singh and Swarat Ghosh apart from a core committee to put together this festival as part of Light Craft Foundation with the government of Telangana. “For a photographer who is learning and feels lost in a world of visual flatterers, this will be a good platform to see the work of some of the best photographers. We’ve been lucky to get a few reputed international photographers whom we otherwise may never get a chance to meet,” says Aquin.
Both amateur and professional photographers can take their craft to the next level by getting their portfolios reviewed by experts, enrol for master classes, go on photo walks and participate in workshops with prior registration.
The collection of images on display will cut across genres — journalism, street, wildlife, documentary, mobile, landscapes, fine art and portrait.
Among these are archival pictures shot by Kulwant Roy in the pre and post-independence India, commissioned works from Auckland Festival of Photography, Cheryl Diaz’s images that give a window into life at a hospital for mental diseases in Baghdad, Sreesailam Pasupula’s images of festivities in Mathura and Vrindavan, Chinky Shukla’s hard hitting images from Jadugoda, which she terms a nuclear graveyard, and Neel Dongre Grant commissioned works among others.
‘A picture is worth a thousand words’ is an overused but apt adage to talk about the impact of a photograph, feels Aquin. “The world woke up to the gravity of the crisis in Syria after seeing the image of the young boy, Aylan Kurdi, washed up on the shores. Such is the impact of a photograph. It’s a tool for social change and holds a mirror to issues ranging from survivors of cancer, trafficking and nuclear disasters,” he says.
Aquin and the team hope to make this an annual event.
Photo archives
The festival will present archival images from the work of Raja Triambak Raj Bahadur, Lala Deen Dayal, Kulwant Roy and B. Rajan Babu.
