A Cannes Silver lion winner and a Design and Art Direction award nominee, Sharad Haksar says travelling and exploring give him an adrenaline rush. By Surabhi Jajodia
From capturing the majestic conical roofed houses in Alberobello, Italy to the mystical remains of castles and fortresses built in the 7th century in Croatia, eastern Europe, Chennai based photographer, Sharad Haksar is known to capture the unconventional and the unexplored architecture. His latest series Stories of Three Cities captures a new concept, ‘illusions in impressions,’ documenting the imprints made by ordinary objects, like banana and corn which were slurred with powdered coloures.
Talking about his new series, Haksar shares, “The astounding thing about this exhibition is that it involves an amalgamation of three varied themes. While the eye-soothing scenes from Italy and Croatia are a part of my 15 days trip, the third conceptual series that is on display is the inspiration I got from Neil Armstrong’s first step on the moon. It was the illusionary images that created a lot of buzz in the past and I really wanted to do something on illusions. Also, the reason behind having a single platform for such parallel genres was to break the stereotype of single theme exhibitions.”
From the numerous photographs that have been exhibited, there are two series which are very close to his heart. “I basically like conceptual photography so I really enjoyed working on my series, The Divine Irony in which I’ve shot Hindu Gods. It includes lakshmi along with a wall that has a beggar showing the humorous irony about life. The other series that is really special to me is Brand Irony, which portrays a man taking a leak on the wall with the following written: nike, just do it.”
Photography is not just limited to a good camera or the composition. Rather, photography compels one to explore the world. Being an advertising photographer, Haksar says, “Earlier, my hectic schedule never gave me the leisure to follow my heart. I love travelling and that is what I have been doing for the past three years. I have been very fascinated with historical architecture and nature, so I go for a fifteen day trip to places where not many people have been. I interact with the people and learn about their culture, food and lifestyle.”
little did he know that his hobby would one day bring him more than 200 awards. Haksar’s photographic journey apparently started as a three-year-old and the idea of pursuing it as a career stuck him when he was in eleventh standard. “I met Iqbal Mohammad who had returned to Chennai after studying photography in US. I loved his work and since he had come from the west, his work was different and creative than what I had seen in India at that point. He saw some of my amateur pictures and said that I have an eye for photography and even offered me the chance to work with him. This was the major turning point in my life,” shared Haksar.
When asked about his perspective towards life as a photographer, Haksar shared, “life is too short. We keep doing the same mundane stuff day in and day out. But before you realise what you want, you become too old to do it. So, I believe that you have one life which you need to live to the fullest and travel does that for me. It gives me a sense of fulfillment when I go to different places.”
Photos: Md Meharban