Photography is my passion. I’ve been using a camera for a long time now. But I took up this art form seriously in 2013 and have been at it since then,” says yesteryear’s actress Waheeda Rehman who is exhibiting her photographs for the first time at Meraki, a group show in Mumbai. Her photographs reveal stunning sand dunes, landscapes and wildlife. The photography grammar in these images indicate that Rehman is drawn towards leading lines and a sense of geometry.
“Photography has become an addiction and I try to learn as much as I can now, especially with photo tours led by the curator of this exhibition, Himanshuu Sheth. “It was more like she discovered me,” says Sheth who talks about his association with the actress of classic films such as Pyaasa, Neel Kamal and Guide.
“It’s been Waheedaji’s long-standing desire to learn photography, but unfortunately there was no proper outlet for her to pursue. I was doing a small shoot for her son, Sohail for his furniture brand. He learnt that I conduct photography tours and immediately told me his mother would love to go on a photo safari and learn photography. And it’s been more than six years since then. Our bond gets stronger with each passing trip.”
The exhibition brings together 23 photography enthusiasts, who travelled to Kutch, Arunachal Pradesh, Kenya, Tanzania, Namibia, Turkey, Ecuador and Galapagos Islands for the images. Other popular names in this lot are Roop Kumar Rathod, Urvi Piramal, Archana Mariwala, Ramadorai and Smita Parekh.
But Sheth asserts that all the participants are stalwarts and very passionate about otography. “The age group ranges from 11-year-old Ishaan Kumar to 82-year-old Waheedaji. They have all learned and taken guidance from the safari and one another,” says Sheth. The purpose of the show is to help NGOs concerned with wildlife conservation. “Nature is the sole source of our existence and we need to preserve it to preserve ourselves,” says Sheth.
Till: December 16
At: Nine Fish Art Gallery, The New Great Eastern Mills, Byculla, Mumbai