Seven young, professional photographers recently came together to settle the question regarding the seriousness of mobile photography through their work, all shot on a mobile phone. The exhibition, titled Photo OK Please, was held at the Lalit Kala Akademi from November 14-20.
If you think a mobile camera is only suited for pouting selfies and impromptu birthday pictures, think again.
Seven young, professional photographers recently came together to settle the question regarding the seriousness of mobile photography through their work, all shot on a mobile phone. The exhibition, titled Photo OK Please, was held at the Lalit Kala Akademi from November 14-20.
The photographers, all of whom have worked with various media houses, showcased different shades of life, myriad emotions, and vibrancy of India and other countries through as many as 80 pictures. From the 20-something Monica Tiwari's beautiful pictures to Altaf Qadri's work covering conflict and violence, the images shone with an earnestness not generally associated with cell phone pictures.
"Anyone who owns a phone has turned into a photographer. Sadly, this 'creativity'is limited to selfies and Diwali, Holi pictures. In this melee of 'I, too, am a photographer', people who are using phones as a serious medium have been relegated to the background. So, when we conceived the idea of this exhibition a month ago, our main objective was to tell the world that phone photos are more than just selfies," said Chandan Khanna, whose brainchild is Photo OK Please.
Khanna's sentiments were reflected in the images that told stories of their own. For instance, Anurag Banerjee's Love in Bombay shows a girl trying to break free from the embrace of her lover, who does not want her to leave. The photo captures a secret that has no space indoors. So, it spills out in to an overcrowded city.
Sumit Dayal, a news and documentary photography expert, had put up an arresting installation of 5,000 pictures, including selfies, professional work and personal moments with family and friends. Tiwari's work reflected her four months' stay in Sunderbans for a project.
"Since there was limited connectivity while I was working on the project, my mobile phone became my companion to overcome loneliness. I used to click on phone once my day as a professional photographer ended. It gave me the much-needed respite," Tiwari said
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