Photographer Jaisingh Nageswaran’s childhood was defined by just one incident. Growing up in Vadipatti village (near Madurai) of Tamil Nadu, the school his grandmother, Ponnuthai, ran (Gandhiji Primary School) was demolished owing to caste conflicts and because the family were Dalits. Though rebuilt later, the incident scarred the young boy about how power is always skewed in favor of the rich and powerful and how displacement is reserved for the oppressed. “My work is driven by memory, nostalgia for my childhood, and Dalit experiences,” the 45-year-old explains.
Growing up, his early life in a rural setting shaped his visual storytelling, where themes of simplicity, nature, and nostalgia frequently surface in the form of one’s relationship with agriculture or with the local river. These are the experiences that the photographer exhibits in The Land that is No More at the Indian Photo Festival in Hyderabad. The images were captured during a visit to the villages in the Narmada Valley between 2002 and 2004 at the height of the protests that were witnessed against the increasing the height of the Sardar Sarovar Dam.
The fact that he was a Tamilian who spoke next to no Hindi was no deterrent for the photographer who wanted to capture the displacement of marginalised people. “When I went to the valley, I found that though it was a different state, yet there was an unerring similarity to my own village. The landscape was universal so I faced no challenges. Those fields could have been the rice fields of Madurai, and Narmada could have been the Periyar River that flows through my village,” he says.
In the over 35 images, one can see Nageswaran’s signature exploration of people and spaces—capturing stories that convey strength, belonging, and lived experiences. He strives to highlight the beauty in the ordinary and the unseen, creating a visual dialogue between the subjects and the viewers. Each frame speaks to a greater socio-cultural and emotional truth, a hallmark of his storytelling lens.
Inspired by Iranian cinema and the French New Wave Cinema, his imagery is evocative and deeply personal, blurring the boundaries between documentary and art, creating a poignant record of the subtle beauty of everyday village life. By focusing on simplicity and everyday scenes, he challenges the invisibility of Dalit narratives in mainstream visual culture.
It is this blend of personal nostalgia and broader social commentary that won him the prestigious Grand Prix at the 2023 KYOTOGRAPHIE International Photography Festival in Japan. Currently, he is working on a new series centered on his childhood memories, family history, and the caste struggle and resilience faced by four generations of his family.