Since he is known in Dhaka as both a photographer and a print maker, asked which genre of art he preferred, Proshanto said that he liked both equally, and couldn't live without one or the other. However, he appeared to be more excited over his future plans in photography being flushed with success with his recent trip to Paris. He spoke of doing an exhibition on the "Pal" gypsies of Bangladesh -- stressing on the importance of harking back to our Bangladeshi tradition.

Dwelling on his motivation for a focus on the Eiffel Tower, Proshanto said that he was in Paris, in the course of a joint exhibit of prints by Bangladeshi artists. He was studying there too, he said, but due to domestic pressures he had to return after completing his course. He went to Paris thrice last year (staying there for two months), and found Paris a truly beautiful city with the Eiffel Tower as its crowning charm. He spent three days in taking photos of his subject. "Since the space in the gallery is limited, I've been able to accommodate only 25 photos," he said.

Asked if he feared that the viewers might get blasé with the subject being repeated many times, without any overwhelming variation, he said that his aim was to present a tourist type subject. He added that the footnotes said it all the various prices of the tickets and the numerous offers of the place. "My aim is dissemination of knowledge," he explained.

Talking about why he had not done the exhibit in black-and-white to make it more poetic, he said that he could not develop and print his work on the lines of Anwar Hossain. Basically Proshanto is a painter, and his departure into photography, as when he did his exhibit on Sufia Kamal, was more an experiment rather than a passion. "This is diversion," he said.

His interest in photography grew when his brother, Kalidas Karmakar, presented him with a Canon AE1when he was 28. He said that he studied photography in Paris, Belgium and Netherlands. He also studied books on photography given to him by family and friends. Talking about his choice of Bangladeshi photographers, he says that they range from Anwar Hossain (based in Paris), to Chandan of MAP, to Dr Shahidul Alam of Drik. Among those from abroad, he admires the Indian photographer Raghu Rai. "I also participate in the yearly World Press Photography competition, with its base in the Netherlands. Today photography has replaced painting in some ways; I believe that photography is an integral part of fine arts," Proshanto concluded.