Sathish Kumar's photo series 'Sunlight' documents a pandemic

Sunlight, often, is the main character in a photograph. And for Sathish Kumar's photographs too, sunlight is all that created the much talk-about drama. At this ongoing exhibition, Artists for Artists, at Experimenter Ballygunge, Sathish Kumar’s showcased photographs, titled Sunlight, capture moments from the pandemic, which are symbolic of his gradual journey from the stillness of lockdown to the post-pandemic years.

Sathish Kumar's photographs showcased at this Kolkata exhibition, Artists for Artists

Sathish Kumar's subjects are varied—loved ones, sites in Hampi, Kanchipuram, and Chennai, as well as light in its various forms. His foray into photography began in his youth when he spent his school holidays in his uncle’s photography studio in Bengaluru. He photographed everyday moments and scenes, like school picnics, cricket grounds, and his friends, with a point-and-shoot camera that his uncle gifted him.

Kumar continues to capture seemingly ordinary things through his practice, which is best summarised in his own words as “a record of his everyday existence, all encounters and journeys, and an expression of himself, his life, and the world around him.”

Sunlight is an ongoing body of work that Sathish began during COVID-19 pandemic as a response to the unease and anxiety that he experienced in confinement. Hope took the form of sunlight, gently easing out the darkness from his mind. This body of work has helped Sathish find balance amidst his contrasting feelings of hope and anxiety, where each image is connected by a moment in time.

"Most of the time during the lockdown period, I have spent atop the water tank at my home, spotting things and moments. I have tried to showcase my feelings in all these five years, through these 35 pictures," says Sathish.

One interesting part of the series is that, though it is called Sunlight, the photos are all in greyscale. Sathish answers our inquisitive question and says, "For me, Sunlight is everything white. Amid all the darkness that's the "white"-ness which stands out, which gives me energy. Thus, the title. Also, I like giving simple titles to my photos, so that even a child can understand."

Ranging from something as basic as a pineapple to the launch of India's missile, from a shadow on the terrace wall to a person soaking himself in a pond, he has captured it all.