CHENNAI: Amrita Samant looks like your regular girl around town. But most of her dates these days revolve around ‘younger’ people. And for some reason, even though she’s quite the player, doing anywhere between 15 to 20 of these a month, the parents always seem to love her! If you haven’t heard about this photographer who puts the spotlight on babies, then here’s one of the few introductions to her that involve less goo-goo ga-ga, and more ‘that’s the girl that shot my kid’! After barely a year in the niche area of maternity shoots and candid baby moments, this 29-year-old with the travelling lens has gotten so popular that she tells us, “I’m out on shoot almost every other day!” And given the fast growing demand for this kind of photography, she suggests that more aspiring lensmen and women get on board. “Moms especially would go nuts doing this,” she tells us with a laugh. “You just can’t have any trouble with all this cuteness going around,” Amrita shares with a smile.
Now, taking a cue from all the expectant mothers who have trouble finding pretty clothes that work as an accessory to their baby bumps, Amrita and designer friend Chinthya Iyer, have even started their own line of maternity gowns. Block colours rather than busy prints highlight the belly, rather than hide it and for that extra boost of beautiful, they have a new trick. “Two of the gowns we’ve created have a trail at the back, sort of like a wedding dress,” she describes.
The idea, for those who had never been pregnant before, (husbands listen up) is to get these women feeling pretty over podgy. And renting these out to those who don’t have their own for shoots, has made for some very happy mommies.
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Between a calendar packed with shooting dates, a car filled with toys for toddlers that she takes with her and everyday innovating with parents on how they want to frame their memories — this lass behind the lens admits that finding a breather these days is a lot harder than getting a baby to smile. However, she’s not too busy to tell us about how the market is taking baby steps. “I know that newborn photography is considered a taboo in India,” she says. “But I’m glad that parents are slowly opening up to it, because your baby is only going to stay that tiny for so long.” Fresh, plump and pink, you’re going to want to savour that first day with your newborn forever. And what better way to do it, than by freezing a memory with a little zoom, and a whole lot of ‘flash’ from your tiny miracle!
To see her works, log on to www.mommyshotsbyamrita.com.