For the first time in 2011, a photo festival was held in India. With director, Prashant Panjiar, we looked back on the success of the first edition, and looked forward to next edition of the festival in 2013.
Why was the first Delhi Photo Festival such a resounding success ?
P. Panjiar : For two reasons. First, it reached an audience that was not used to seeing photography, or even art in general. The idea to hold the festival in an open space at the Habitat Centre, which is Delhi’s conference center, allowed the festival to be visited by the greatest number of people. Getting photography out of galleries and museums is one of the festival’s main goals.
The second reason for its success was the presence of 75 photographers (35 Indian, 40 foreign) and 94 exhibitions and slideshows. From the outset, the festival received international coverage, which was especially helpful for Indian photographers. The lack of facilities, museums and schools devoted to photography makes it difficult for photographers in India to meet each other. The opening week served as a forum of exchange for a community that barely existed beforehand. Seeing internationally renowned photographers like Dayanita Singh interacting with young photographers is still a rare thing in India!
What can we look forward to at the 2013 edition ?
P.P : The 2013 edition (September 27 – October 11, 2013) will take “grace” as its theme, in honor of the fashion photographer Prabuddha Dasgupta, who died suddenly in August 2012. He was one of the festival’s biggest supporters, and we wish to pay tribute to him. The call for applications opens this month.
We are also inviting galleries and cultural centers to join the festival by programming photography exhibitions in September and October. For a few weeks, we want the whole city to live for photography.
We will also release the first photography monograph published by the Nazar Foundation, which organizes the festival. We wanted to help give certain photographers more visibility, and these monographs will help accomplish that goal.
This interview has been edited and back-translated into English from the French. Prashant Panjiar’s responses do not necessarily represent his actual words.
