Soham Gupta Photography

55B

sohamgupta — Sun, 19 Feb 2012 10:38:16 +0000

55B is a tale of three individuals living in isolation, within the boundaries of their old, dilapidated mansion in Calcutta. It is a tale of love: about a father and his son, trying their best to keep the woman of their house happy in her last days. It is about the bond that keeps them moving and the loneliness of their lives; it is about their fears, insecurities and most importantly, hopes.

This is a work in progress.

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Multimedia

sohamgupta — Wed, 08 Feb 2012 14:26:49 +0000

CHILDREN OF THE BRIDGE

sohamgupta — Mon, 26 Dec 2011 11:15:42 +0000

A series about children, living under the 2nd Hoogly Bridge of Calcutta.

40 Years Later: The Story of Non-existence

sohamgupta — Thu, 22 Dec 2011 22:03:01 +0000

A stone’s throw away from the hustle and bustle of Central Avenue, Jyoti Nagar Colony is home to 700 people nonexistent in the eyes of the Indian government. Khude Mistry (68) talks about the desperate times that were the 1970s. ‘The Liberation War had just ended. And we were going through a period of great crisis. And the only hope for our survival was the city of Calcutta on the other side of the border.’

Of all the residents of Jyoti Nagar Colony, around thirty members have Voter ID cards in their possession today. The rest continue to toil invisibly in the innards of the nearby scrap-recycling industry with hopes of legitimacy in the days to come.

If their worst nightmare prevails, the colony could be razed to the ground in the future. But the residents don’t worry much. Because they have been surviving the cynics for ages.

Special Thanks:

Mr. Ashis Das, Earth Care

Mr. Nizamuddin

sohamgupta — Fri, 18 Nov 2011 18:45:18 +0000

FACES IN THE NIGHT

As winter floats gracefully into the city and the morning showers promise cold nights under warm quilts, Calcutta wakes to queerly vibrant nights. The photos are shot at nightish evenings and lonely nights, when faces settle down to their virgin best. This is when people prepare for sloth and sleep and yet gains a certain inertia; the silences resonating hidden stories and unsung hymns.

Ramthakur Old Age Home

sohamgupta — Tue, 13 Sep 2011 19:23:02 +0000

RAMTHAKUR OLD AGE HOME

Gobinda Halder left his job at a shoe manufacturing unit to set up an old age home in Baghajatin. ‘I realized I could not adjust to an office life. I was struggling. That’s when a friend of mine advised me to set up an old age home, to dedicate my life to what I loved most: to care for the elderly. It was 2000 and after pooling some money, I set up Ramthakur Old Age Home for all those people who needed a better existence in the last innings of their lives.’

Today, the home shelters 40 people, a large majority being the women. Many of them are abandoned by their children. Some others have been single and couldn’t take care of themselves anymore.

Each member is required to pay a monthly fee of Rs. 2500 ($50). Gobinda admits that a few members who cannot afford to pay the sum are exempted. ‘Regularly, I meet people who want to dump their parent/s to my home. Most of them are well-established men and women, desiring to live a trouble-free life without their elderly parents. But, you know, life is like a mirror. It looks back at you. Little do these people realize that they may meet a similar fate a few decades from now…’

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Members

Nearing sixty, Gopa Basu is unmarried. An ever-smiling woman with some mental disability, she has an elder brother who pays the monthly fee at Ramthakur Old Age Home.

Manju Das is in her sixties. She too is unmarried. Her sister often drops by at the home.

Sabita Bhattacharya(left) is seventy-eight. Her sister is the one who admitted her to this old age home. Her son, unfortunately blows away everything on liquor and rarely cares about his mother.

Khona Basu (right) is eighty. An affectionate woman, her husband probably dumped her many years ago.

Gautam Basu is seventy-seven. Earlier he lived in Salt Lake. Now, has no contact with son.

Parul Banerjee, in her seventies has been left at this home by his son.

Kalyani Ghosh, in her mid-sixties hails from Nadia. Now looked after by her sister.

Sunil Kr. Some was admitted at Ramthakur Old Age Home by his married daughter. He is in his early seventies.

Binapani Chakravarthy is in her mid-eighties. Her grandson and his wife visit her at times.

Bibekananda Muthsuddi has been at this Home for a long time with his wife. She expired three months ago.

Sonu, as they call her here, has Down syndrome. Her mother adopted a boy many years ago. After the woman died, the man would beat up orphaned Sonu all the time. It was then that the neighbors took charge of her and admitted Sonu here. She still has a home in the Kalighat neighborhood.

Sukhomoy Banerjee was in the construction business. In his prime, he had visited many of the European destinations. His son is a senior banker who works in Bombay. Sukhomoy says, ‘He lives happily with his family. And as you can see, I am also happy here! I don’t depend on anyone! And that’s what I am so proud of, you see!’

Anjali Pal is in her eighties. She talks about old times to anyone she meets passing by.

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Contact Details

Ramthakur Old Age Home

Regn No: S/L 52040

6 A Deshbandhu Road,

Calcutta 700086

Phones: +919051327628, +913365157628, +919330838438

AN UNNAMED HOUSE

sohamgupta — Wed, 24 Aug 2011 16:50:51 +0000

Constructed in 1933 by a retired judge named Surendranath Mitra, this building was supposed to be named ‘Deul’, a Bengali word for temple. The building was never named by a heartbroken Surendranath, after the premature death of his young daughter during childbirth.

Car Mechanics

sohamgupta — Tue, 09 Aug 2011 11:30:48 +0000

Another installment of my series on workers.

CHILDREN OF RAJABAZAR

sohamgupta — Fri, 22 Jul 2011 19:30:37 +0000

The photo-essay, ‘Children of Rajabazar’ documents the young ones living by the side of the canal which runs through Rajabazar.

BACKGROUND: Rajabazar is a locality in the city of Calcutta in West Bengal, India. During the Partition in 1947, in which Muslims were targeted across Calcutta and Bihar, many people from other parts of Calcutta moved to Rajabazar which already boasted of a huge Muslim population. The anti-Muslim riots in 1964 further intensified the exodus. Over time, therefore, it got transformed into a ghetto. After the 1992-93 riots, many more moved to Rajabazar, as a result of which, today Rajabazar boasts of having the second largest Muslim population in the metropolis.

LIFE BY THE CANAL: Many families live by the side of the canal which runs through this area. The lucky ones live in the ‘permanent’ shanties while the rest live in make-shift shelters, or in the open or under plastic covers. The garbage heaps are indistinguishable from the living spaces here. The men are mostly van-pullers or labourers while the women mostly work as maids in the middle-class households nearby. The children usually work as rag-pickers.

THE CHILDREN: Nearly 90% of the children here have not been to school. Of the remaining, many have dropped out in order to contribute to the family income. While the younger children loiter around the road as cars and trucks zip by, the older children spend their idle time playing cricket or football on the same road. There have been accidents in the recent past but none too serious. No one seems to be bothered at all.

TOMORROW: Change has come to West Bengal. Here, a 56-year old woman has dethroned the longest-running democratically-elected communist government in the world. She has promised change. What we need to see is whether the lives of Aslam, Naushad, Sabir change or not in the near future. Perhaps they will have access to the basic rights that they all rightfully deserve.

sohamgupta — Fri, 15 Jul 2011 00:33:52 +0000

PUBLISHED WORKS

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Photo-Essay

Photography-News

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Photo-Essay

MINT (Hindustan Times)

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Single

Tehelka

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Photo-Essay

The Sunday Guardian

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Single

THE INDEPENDENT

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Photo-Essay

Yale Journal of International Affairs (yalejournal.org)

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Exhibition Review

6Mois

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Photo-Essay

Invisible Photographer (Asia)

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Catelogue

This Is Not That

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PHOTO Magazine (France)

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Eco Echoes

(2008)

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Article

MumbaiMirror (Times of India)

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C/O Earth | Moments

Newsletters on environment and photography respectively

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Article: Three Visions of Contemporary Indian Photography

Swapan Parekh, Soham Gupta, Mahesh Shantaram

ArtInfo

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Story on Indian Farmers: Sterili Terre

PeaceReporter, Italy

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Article

La Lettre de la Photographie

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Photo Essay

Asian Photography

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Photographer Profile

FreePhotoCourse.com