Photo Call

He was a slow learner as a child,but that did not deter Hitesh Vig from pursuing his passion for poetry and photography. At 21,he is making his debut as a photographer with an exhibition at Punjab Kala Bhavan. The display is divided into two sections — while First Exposure is symbolic of Vig’s debut and also comprises a small poem written by him,Thorns and Pearls has images that “capture the beauty of cacti”. Says Vig,“Like life,it is full of harsh realities… Cactus stores whatever little water it gets in the harsh desert and continues to survive. If humans too could use pleasant memories to override the sorrows,life would be beautiful.”

Encouraged by his father,an avid traveller and photographer,Vig began his photography lessons at an early age and travelled across India with his Kodak KB100. “I could not even tie my shoelaces till Class VI and it embarrassed me to ask someone at school to do it for me. When I was 15,I was bedridden for six months and it was during this time that I began to introspect,’’ says Vig,who now uses a Canon camera.

As he looks at his photographs on the wall,he recalls,“I tried to click an eagle taking out a snake from the sea with my Kodak,but the camera did not have zoom or a fast shutter speed and the failure led me to start exploring photography.” Words of encouragement come from Parveen Jaggi of Sandli Pairan Kala Kender,that has organised the exhibition. “He is both talented and committed,’’ smiles Jaggi. The photographer,meanwhile,is already working on another series of conceptual photographs inspired by his poems. Also in the pipeline is a coffee table book with poems and accompanying photographs.

The exhibition is on till October 17 at Punjab Kala Bhawan,Sector 16.