[Reader-list] Posting: Urban Stories

[Nirupama Sekhar]

Hello All.

Everyone knows that Mumbai has been explored and examined a million times by
artists, scholars and ordinary folks alike. Yet, something more of the city
always remains to be said. Such is its charm. And, so many are its stories.
This is a city that simply doesn't let you say: Been there, done that.

(Having lived in Chennai, Delhi, Bangalore and Pune, Mumbai is definitely my
city of choice. To me, it is a case of the cliché being true after all:
Mumbai is, without doubt, the City Magnificent.)

What I intend & hope to achieve through my project is to visually explore
some enduring, some contemporary facets of the city. Which are these exact
facets, you may ask. I am still figuring that one out.

Cops & whores. Actors & sainiks. Bollywood, beaches & businesses. Riots,
rent acts and the inescapable rush. It could well be argued that Mumbai
presents chroniclers of any sort with simply too much material to cope
with.. I concede.

However, I perceive this dizzying array of subject matter as an advantage
that gives me tremendous freedom of choice.  From all that is Mumbai, I am
currently shortlisting what I would like to showcase through my visual
essays. It is hardly an easy task; however, it is proving to be an extremely
fascinating one. The task of selection is fast becoming a stimulating
process of re-examining my knowledge and experience of the city I now call
home. Through this ongoing process of picking and choosing, I am building
the essential framework of Urban Stories, my series of graphic essays.

(I intend to present Mumbai through a series of visual essays. Each essay
will be a conceptually unique self-contained unit. I plan to use a variety
of visual elements ranging from line drawings to photographs and collage.)

Knowing Suketu Mehta took 7 years to maximize the city into words doesn't
help at all! Working full time in television production barely leaves me
with enough time to pursue research for the project at the pace that I would
like. In the time available, I am currently focusing on subject research,
design referencing and photographing the city. I have started the process of
extensively photographing the city. These photos of the city - its
architecture, roads, traffic, infrastructure, people, textures, colours and
more - will provide the basic visual material for my graphic essays.
Simultaneously, I have begun research on specific aspects of the city that
are of special interest to me. Design references are also happening in order
to streamline the overall look and feel of the essays.

(At a later stage during the Fellowship period, I hope to take time off from
my work to focus exclusively on the project. Till then, of course, the
juggling will continue. )

In March, I hope to get down to exploring the city (and my shortlisted
themes) through its people. I am already certain that this next phase of
research is going to be both challenging and enriching.

Regards,
Nirupama

PS: Apologies for the delay. Blame it on TV..
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: http://mail.sarai.net/pipermail/reader-list/attachments/20060305/446c5050/attachment.html