Photos and text by Tanmay Chowdhary
This series, a loose narrative about a girl lost in a time unknown, is an atmosphere piece, an attempt to recreate sensory memories. This piece was inspired by a fascination towards nostalgia.
Born and brought up in the city of Calcutta in India, Tanmay moved to the US when he was 18. He has been on a constant move ever since, each year being drastically different from the previous one. With the constant change around him, including the change in himself, it was getting more and more difficult to remember how it all started. He fears that when he wakes up in a few years, he won’t remember his past anymore. For him, this series is like presenting a collection of old almost dried up perfume bottles, where none of the bottles have been reused and each one carefully preserved, so that the scent can then transport us to a time that was. It is a series that explores the idea of sense. The story follows a girl living in a post apocalyptic wasteland, where civilization has come to an end. She spends most of her day by the beach, staring at an empty chair, which is half submerged into the sea. The series of images that follow is a representation of her nostalgic subconscious. The series is also a commentary on contemporary life, a life where humankind is consumed by the race towards technology, a time where we have forgotten how to connect. All of these images were taken in the desert regions around LA – Death Valley and Salton Sea.
About the author:
Tanmay Chowdhary was born in the winter of 1990 in Calcutta, India. He studies film production at the University of Southern California in Los Angeles. He has a degree in Business Management from the University of Illinois. He has worked as a photojournalist, a trader and an independent filmmaker in the past. He has been published by Doc.
