A photograph at the exhibition

A much needed and exciting vista has opened up for the visually impaired -- photography. Thanks to Partho Bhowmick and his 'Blind with Camera', the public in Delhi recently got to see the 28 commendable works of nine such photographers -- Rahul Shirsat, R Dharmarajan, Sujit Chaurasia, Praveen Bhosale, Mahesh Umrrania, Raju Singh, Kanchan Pamnani, Sunil Bhavsar and Nikhil Mundhe -- at Delhi's popular cultural haunt, the India Habitat Centre.

Many of the works caught the eye of the viewer. In the ranks was a photograph by Raju of the Victoria Terminus in Mumbai. Explaining his motivation in creating this effective work, the photographer says, “I wanted to create a different picture of the Victoria Terminus and learned the skill of multiple exposure… It may be interesting to imagine a dreamy image with 'closed eyes' but it was even more exciting to create one by imagining it with open eyes, with limited sight.”

What makes such a work unparalleled is Raju's remarkable courage that he has displayed amply in his life. Born with normal sight, he developed low vision at an early age. Currently he has low vision with limited depth of field and works as a computer instructor in a blind school. Amplifying on his philosophy, a brochure quotes him as saying, “I get very close to objects to see it 'somewhat' clearly. My low vision makes the normal sighted people see the abstractness they wouldn't see otherwise.”

The photography exhibition, titled Beyond Sight, is the brainchild of Mumbai-based corporate Bhowmick. “Exhibitions such as this can promote considerable awareness about the visually impaired,” he explains, adding “In the urban scenario we say let such people get educated and make some living out of their art so that they can live independently. However in rural areas the scene is totally different, as they are either over protected or under protected.”

Bhowmick and Blind with Camera’s mentor is the French visually impaired photographer Evgan Bavcar. “He has been a major inspiration because he was the first point of contact for me,” says Bhowmick. Though he has not met Bavcar, Bhowmick keeps in touch with him on the Internet.

Prior to showing in Delhi, Beyond Sight has been held in Mumbai and Bangalore. The exhibition will travel to other Indian cities in 2007 and 2008 to raise awareness and sensitise people to the needs of the visual impaired. The “inclusive” exhibition provides touchable images, Braille footnotes, visual aids and audio description for the visually impaired visitors.

To promote his calling, Bhowmick also organises self-funded workshops on photography with the visually impaired. These are free of cost (barring the fees for his stay and travel). In addition to Beyond Sight, his aim is to boost Disability Arts culture at various academic, social and cultural forums in India.

It is tightrope walking for him to balance his job with his passion for photography. However, as he says he has to squeeze out time to combine both. It is a measure of his commitment to his art that he spares every available moment on it. Here's to many more shows such as this -- not just in India but all over the world.