Photographer of the month - Kaveer Rai
Kaveer Rai, a Mangalore/Portland- based photographer, began capturing everyday moments with a handy-camera, eventually turning his hobby into a profession. Recognized by the National Geographic Moment Award in 2010, Kaveer left his job as a creative visualizer to pursue photography full-time. He earned a degree in documentary photography from Pathshala, Bangladesh, and was one of five selected for a master class with Stephen Alvarez in Puerto Rico in 2014. His work has been featured as a cover photo for 'afaqs Reporter,' and he received an honorary mention in a USAID photography contest. Kaveer studied at DMJX, Denmark, on a scholarship in 2017, and now works as a freelance photographer, specializing in humanitarian and environmental stories with an abstract touch.
Hi Kaveer, please tell us a little bit about yourself, where you come from and how did you get started in photography? What impact do you think your childhood has on your photography?
I grew up in Mangalore (Karnataka) , a coastal city, with my mom and sister, while my dad worked in Dubai. My dad used to come home once a year and always asked if I needed something from Dubai. My answer would always be ‘no, nothing’, but one year, I thought I'll ask for a walkman or a handy-camera, maybe because it was cool to have it then. I couldn’t decide and out of nervousness told him handy-camera and he actually got it. I regretted asking for it, for years, until I started taking pictures with it and started enjoying it.
Growing up in Mangalore and spending summer vacations at my grandmother's house in Sullia, Karnataka, I spent a lot of time in nature - understanding trees, soil and how much we got from it. Over time this helped me develop an eye for detail.
You earned a degree in documentary photography from Pathshala, Bangladesh, and then went on to study on a year long scholarship in DMJX (Danish School of Media and Journalism), Denmark. Please tell us about the experience of studying in both these places and how it shaped your vision.
After finishing my Masters in Computer Application, I could not land an IT job and started working at an advertising agency as a Visualizer (fancy for Graphic Designer). After 5 years of long hours and irregular meal schedule, I was burnt out. I applied to Pathshala as an exit plan and my application went through! That’s how my education in photography started. In Bangladesh, I learnt humility and empathy from classmates as well as other people around the campus. From the teachers there, I learnt how to edit and critique your work by detaching from it. That place taught me that in order to make honest art, you need to be a good human being first.
At DMJX in Denmark, I was challenged with a new landscape and new perspectives. I had to dig deep within myself to find the artist in me and how to perform in face of ambiguity.I was able to see works of some great artists from the western world, learn their process, and gain guidance from them to develop our own process. It was very different from asian practices I had come across; I discovered that there were more ways to create and enough space to evolve. In short, both the places taught me lessons that were not just photography in general but also the process strengthened my storytelling. I do believe that these experiences have made me a better human being than before.
Given your extensive work on photo essays, what inspires your choice of subjects, and how do you approach the process of developing each narrative, as well as deciding on a title that encapsulates the story?
I don't usually chase a story or look for a subject, I look for a subject that piques my interest. I research, learn more by asking questions that lead to a narrative while helping me learn more about the subject, and photography follows. The title of the story is formed at the end, while I am editing it. My goal is to edit it like a poem, where there is enough scope to read between the lines and is layered as much as the viewer is willing to indulge. The title is usually a guide or nudge in the direction of my interpretation.
Your personal project ‘Dreams not remembered’ involves a lot of your flaws, fears, it looks like a very vulnerable thing to do. How hard was it to open up in letters to yourself? Do you often feel that photos should be paired with text and how did you come up with the idea of writing postcards to yourself?
‘Dreams not remembered’ is very close to me - because it is truthfully me in pieces. I created it as a part of an exercise at DMJX where I had to do a personal story. Living in Denmark, I saw nothing that represented me. I was far away from my country of origin, and with time running out I had to make a story - hence, the introspection began. I wrote down everything that was me, and something that stood out from it was - I don’t get dreams or I don’t remember them at all the next morning, clean state. I explored this idea and tried Freudian dream journaling. I set an alarm for different times of the night, and woke up to a clean slate each time. I started writing down the first thought that came to mind. I did this for 30 days. In the end, I realized all that I wrote were things/thoughts that I had brushed under the carpet unaddressed. I made photographs depicting each thought. Just like old times when people traveled to a new place they'd get a postcard which reminds them of their travels, I was the place/city and these postcards were different aspects of me.
What challenges do you face in capturing sensitive or personal stories? Could you also share a memorable experience from one of your projects?
When you make personal stories you are vulnerable, you have tears to drown yourself on some days, however, the hard part is to decide do I let it sit in the closet or show it to the world. Showing to the world would mean baring it all, without knowing how some will judge you or how they will perceive you through your work. The fear is also about -Will the idea of you in them be tarnished after this?
Personal stories have helped me heal, it’s been therapeutic. Probably putting your life on paper as art gives you space to detach from yourself and evolve. For example I have more respect for people around me family friends and I see how they have helped me become the person I am today. I also have more empathy towards me.
You have a very distinct look in how you grade your photos. They are usually quite muted and less contrasty. What attracts you to that style? Whose work are you inspired by?
I don’t know, I am not the first one to do it, nor will I be the last one. I have seen a lot of work from different photographers around the globe and subconsciously might have picked it. Some artists I've drawn inspiration from are Alec Soth, Sally Mann and Cristina de Middel. Also, I have been lucky to have great teachers. The process usually involves falling in love with some work/ artist, then falling out of it, and somewhere down the line something clicks again, you now have a style, but again you fall out of it and then you see no other way. I believe in breaking it and redoing it all over again. Also it's fair to say the story sometimes demands the way it needs to look and that helps you look for the right fit.
Lastly, any new projects that you are working on currently and how do you see your work evolving in the future?
Well two actually! I have been working on the extension of my story ‘Dreams not remembered’ now that I live in Portland, OR. In addition to this I am working on a story related to Tea workers in Assam.
I wish I knew how my work would evolve, it's hard to say, especially considering this pressure of making good work online, with evolving AI and low attention spans.My intention would be to stay honest and not create work to please someone or fit into a mould.
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