LGBTQ Identity in India
The title of this blog is called “These Dreamlike Portraits Explore L.G.B.T.Q. Identity in India”. Without looking at the photos and just the title I thought it was going to be about what life is like being apart of the LGBTQ community in India. For example, the struggles they face, what they go through, how they get through day to day and so on. Without knowing the title of the blog, however  the first picture shows two lovers in an embrace. The heavy shadows and dark room they are in may be to imply that their love is somewhat forbidden in some circumstance. There is only light source dimly lighting the couple, symbolizing the love they share or a small ray of hope in this judgemental world of hatred, evil, and darkness.
With the exception of one or two photos, all of the photos have a lot in common. They are shot from mid to long range. They are very dimly lit, dark, photos with more than one person usually. The people have their relationships captioned underneath the photos. They’re not all couples like I had previously thought. There are friends, couples and siblings presented in these photos. I do not think these photos were shot in any particular order but I feel as though the first photo was a really good photo to start on: The couple embracing each other in the dark room with the window barely letting in some light. It’s an incredibly symbolic photo. All of this photographer’s work is shot in low light. In most photos I find, photographers edit their photos to make them seem a lot more bright and vibrant and vivid and in worse cases oversaturated. With this photographer in particular it’s the exact opposite. This photographer’s photos feel way more realistic to me. They make me feel grounded in reality. They make me feel as thought these people are real people as odd as that sounds. These photos, in my eyes, are relatable which is an extremely powerful thing to convey in any work of art let alone photography. They help the photographer get the realness across. It helps the photographer make this story real for the people involved, the people looking at the photos and the people reading the article. You feel some sort of empathy towards them. As I said before the photographer intentionally shoots with a lot of darkness captured in the photo. Besides the realness factor, the darkness plays the symbolic role in all the photos. The darkness and prejudice of society.
My favorite photo in this NY times blog of the LGBTQ identity in India, is the photo above the caption “Anjishnu, 28, and Arjun, 23, are boyfriends. They told the photographer that throughout their lives they had felt suffocated, and imagined being in a dark room where they were unable to breathe. Shibpore, India” which features a gay couple in a dark room only barely being lit by two windows. Besides it being symbolic, this photo is a good example of framing and symmetry.
Nicely stated. Light and darkness can be used as a clear metaphor and I agree that the photographer is doing that here. The most powerful thing a photographer can do is make you feel empathy for the people that he or she photographs. I agree with you that Soumya Sankar Bose is successful in creating empathy for his subjects.