Amid the regular hustle and bustle at the Select Citywalk mall in Saket, Tina stood glued to a television screen which displayed varied works — from fashion photography to mobile photography. “I have never seen this screen placed here before, neither have I seen these works. This is a wonderful way to bring photography close to the common man, who otherwise may not get such opportunities.”And it is with the same intention that photographers Manik Katyal, Poulomi Basu, and CJ Clarke conceptualised ‘Just Another Photo Festival’ (JAPF), that brought powerful, inspiring photography to a mass audience.
The idea for the festival germinated after the trio realised that the present state of photography in India was synonymous with lack of exposure and limited opportunities for people outside of the photography scene to see great work from around the world.
“This encouraged us to explore this space and bring over 150 photographers from 35 countries to Delhi. The main idea is to democratise photography in India; to take it to the people rather than inviting them to fancy museums/gallery shows. We want people to enjoy photography, celebrate the medium and most importantly, make it for people from all classes and backgrounds,” Katyal, founder and editor-in-chief of Emaho Magazine/Foundation, tells Metrolife.
Bringing global photography to the masses, the festival’s first edition held free-to-access events between September 25-30 at prominent public locations across the capital to reach out and build a grassroots platform for photography. The venues included a mall, a slum in Vasant Kunj, Jawaharlal Nehru University, Old Delhi and also Lajpat Nagar.
Sharing details of her work, Adriana Zehbrauskas, a Brazilian documentary photographer says she loves to tell stories about anonymous people, their lives, dreams, hopes and fears.
“The work I’m showing was shot entirely on my iPhone in 2015 either as a commission, or complementing an assignment. Most of these images were uploaded to my Instagram feed. I think it’s important to tell stories about people and places that are always misrepresented. No stories are too small to be told,” Zehbrauskas says.
Another photographer, Nafise Motlaq from Iran says that while her project reflects her relationship with her father, who came back to life after slipping in to coma for a few days, it also showcases Iranian culture.
“The project started with simple portraits of my family and friends but later I decided to look at it within a bigger perspective to show the variety of social classes in Iran through a father-daughter relationship. In this collection, people will see how diverse Iranians are in terms of cultural, economic, social and religious background,” she tells Metrolife.
But how strong is the concept of public art in India?
“Photography should be shown more in public places because it kills the elitism of the medium which is often presented at certain selective venues only. We really believe in the concept of public art and are planning to take JAPF to different cities. I wish that there was more support from the local photography community, instead we are being targeted. But we are here to celebrate photography and make JAPF a huge success, not for us but for the cause of public art,” Katyal says.
Agrees UK-based Philip Toledano, whose work ranges from socio political to being deeply personal. He says, “I firmly believe in the idea of democratic art. It shouldn't
be locked away in the exclusive biosphere in which it tends to exist.”