Its a challenge to capture the subterranean quirkiness of the New York City subway with its graffiti walls and brightly lipsticked characters bending low,but Delhi-based photographer Dinesh Khanna catches the mood roughishly on the camera. Of course,his is not an entirely shocking image of one of the most photographed cities in the world,where the subway is a muse and commuters shoot pixilated candid moments on their camera phones everyday. It is difficult to create an image of New York that no one has seen before, laughs Delhi-based Ajay Rajgarhia,the promoter of Wonderwall,an online fine art gallery,who put together the exhibition Wide Angle 2010. The exhibition,at The Stainless gallery,comprises 42 photographs by eight photographers like Amit Mehra,Karan Khanna,Prashant Panjiar,Pradeep Dasgupta and Sunil Gupta as well as video installations by Gopika Nath,Sukanya Ghosh and Rajgarhia,a photographer himself. What the exhibition lacks in theme,it makes up in its snapshots faces in motion,unstudied poses,derelict buildings and a stunning portrait of photographer Sunil Gupta against lush green fields. Colour has never been as bright as in Karan Khannas photographs,from Bansuriwallah in Chennai to a bustling scene from Chandni Chowk. Dasguptas Kleptomania shows empty hangers against a pastel background while Prashant Panjiars Pan India is a visual representative of a country on the cusp of change. Mehras wide-frame shots dwell on scenic Rajasthan while Ram Rahman presents old photography studios of the Capital. I dont give the photographers a theme. It is difficult to ask a Sunil Gupta to do works similar to that of Prashant Panjiar or Amit Mehra, said Rajgarhia,who plans to open an exhibition space in Lado Sarai in November. The exhibition is on till September 30. Contact 011-42603167
