An Ode to Publishing

A man makes a note on a dog-eared notepad pasted on a run-down wall,where stainless steel tumblers are arranged neatly on a shelf.

Written by Prajakta Hebbar
October 27, 2012 05:01 AM IST

2 min read

A man makes a note on a dog-eared notepad pasted on a run-down wall,where stainless steel tumblers are arranged neatly on a shelf. A cut-out of a cartoon monk pasted a long time ago,peeks from under a jumble of wires. The photograph that oozes this old-world neglect is clicked by self-taught photographer,Ananth Padmanabhan,and is a part of his first ever solo exhibition,titled Calcutta Walking in the City. There is so much more to a city than its streets,monuments and markets, says Padmanabhan. When I click pictures,I like to look for oddities and noneities. They always have an unusual story to tell, says the 37-year-old,who has been working with the publishing industry for 20 years.

The exhibition boasts around 30 black-and-white photographs shot inside a printing press in Kolkata. Padmanabhan explains his choice. The press is called Swapna Printing Works Pvt Ltd. I had visited the place in 1998,when I was discovering Kolkata. I especially wanted to see it,because this is where first books by international publishers coming to India were published. In a way,the printing press,and,indeed Kolkata,played a huge role in the publishing industry of modern India. This is a personal journey and a tribute as a photographer,to the years Ive spent in publishing, he says. He revisited the place earlier this year and took the photographs in a day.