Anshika Varma

25 Works

An artist tells a story, not just by what she creates or captures. But also by what she chooses not to - a musician by the notes she chooses not to play, a painter by the forms she doesn’t create and a photographer by what she leaves out of the frame.

My photographs can’t exist without the context our world gives them. In them you will see a lone fruit seller fighting to survive an armada of refrigerated convenience stores; a hole-in-the-wall tailor pitting his skills against an army of international labels; and the struggle between faith and a religion of brands. You will see the man’s complex relationship with his ever changing environment. One defines the other and in doing so, itself.

Anshika’s association with the camera began in 2006, while completing her studies in mass communication. However, even as a child, she saw her world through the myriad hues of magic and colour revealed to her by her mother.

Anshika’s genre of interest lies in documenting street and city life, characterized by still and abstract forms, its people and colour. Her work comes out of an innate curiosity about the world around her. Most of her images are centered on people and their relationship with their personal spaces. She waits to capture them in their unguarded moments, in an attempt to explore more about their life. In doing so, she attempts to preserve the memory and the changing nature of our cities and customs.

Anshika was invited as an artist to the Florence Biennale (2009) and has participated in shows organized and held in New Jersey, Wyoming, Bangalore, and Delhi. Her works have also appeared in Vogue, Rolling Stone India, Time Out, Housecalls and various national as well as international media.

She received the “Lorenzo Il Magnifico” award for her photography at the Florence Biennale, 2009. She has also received an award in filmmaking by CNBC TV18 for a documentary “Mum and Dad” and has received an award by the Bombay Ad Club for an Advertising campaign to create awareness regarding the Domestic Violence Bill.

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