Angst explores my decaying Calcutta at night, haunted by decaying souls in her nooks and crannies.
Q&A with Soham Gupta
Photography is:
Very important, of course.
Photography and writing:
Both are sanctuaries I can retreat into whenever I desire; the experiences and emotions involved enriching me all the while.
When, at times, I go back to my photographs and my journals , I always have a feeling that I get to know myself better than what I think I know about myself and it is always surprising . Someone I dearly love advised me to never miss the chance to collect the rain of emotions and moments which pour down on us leaving only puddles.
Who left the biggest impression on you?
I have been following Don McCullin’s work from the very onset of my interest in photography and in ways, the photographs have shaped me into the person I am today. Pico Iyer, my favorite author has also played a very, very important role in molding me. To me, his books and his journals are all about a certain kind of graceful loneliness that I find irresistible. I don’t know whether I will ever meet him again or whether he will ever recognize me, but spending a week with Antoine d’Agata in Cambodia has been quite a turning point in my life; the way, by delving deep into each of his students, he brings out their real selves which they’ve been trying to hide even from themselves, is amazing.
Tell us a little about yourself
I chronicle loneliness: within me and beyond.
Soham Gupta, (www.soham-gupta.com), 1988, Calcutta, India.
Freelance photojournalist, editorial and documentary photographer. Also works as a non-fiction writer.
