Vijay Sarathy is a 23-year-old visual artist and designer from the coastal city of Chennai, India who is on a journey of settling into himself. Having recently spent a 42 day period in which he set out to do nothing, Vijay photographs in order to capture and release his memories and emotions.
"It's almost as if the process is in not having a process."
"Sometimes I shoot stuff and do not look at it for weeks on end - I think this approach has come to define my work. I don't go out of the way to make things happen, I just take photos as life happens around me. I think in that way photography is a lot about the way you live."
"When I edit I almost get into a trance. I nudge things around again and again until I stumble upon something that moves me. I particularly love playing with color and texture because I think that's where a lot of emotion comes from, aside from the image composition, of course. This trial and error method can be frustrating, but I think it keeps my options open and sparks discovery more often."
"I think of each of my images as a memory, and memories often have a certain dreaminess to them. Tangible but a little surreal at the same time."
"I was going through a very depressive phase some years ago and I turned to photography because it was one of the few things that didn't make me feel completely apathetic. I've always come back to making images that stir something in me. In a lot of ways, photography has bettered me, and continues to do so."
"I couldn't handle the city, and I had to get away – so I did. In April I rented a room in northern India, away from everything, and stayed there alone for 42 days. I did nothing during that time other than go on walks and take pictures, all while wearing out this one particular playlist. I needed that time so much and I've learned to value doing nothing greatly ever since then."
"I've been fortunate enough to meet some beautiful people because of the medium. I think it's so much more a self-growth and introspective medium than people give it credit for. I also like to pair it with writing sometimes. Both of these mediums have helped me to finally start settling into myself as a person."
"It makes me feel like how you'd feel after reading a beautiful poem, something you can't quite put into words."
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