Photography by Karthika Nambiar

Edited by Angela Wang

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Artist Statement: Whether we recognize it or not, we’re all constantly on the move. No matter if it’s traveling to work, visiting friends, moving to a new place, or going on vacation, the world is a vast place and we hardly stay still within it. As someone who has constantly been on the move for my entire life, I’m no stranger to the ceaseless change in the world around us. On my most recent trip to India, I decided to document the journey knowing it would be as fast-paced as any of my other visits back. With so many places to go in so little time, there was hardly a moment to breathe as we traveled across the country.

As a result of the constant traveling, these photos were captured on my phone rather than a larger film or digital camera. Not only was this for practical purposes (like not always being able to take a larger camera everywhere), but focusing on using my phone as my tool let me easily capture moments on the fly, even when either my subjects or I were on a moving vehicle. Additionally, in this collection, the photos are showcased in a 16:9 ratio for the viewer to have a broader look at the world I’m trying to show.

One thing I’ve been reflecting on with this series is despite how I aimed to capture movement (in both the natural and material world), photography naturally creates a sense of stillness for the viewer. Even in photos where viewers are more aware of the movement that would have been happening at the moment–the crackling of a fire, people walking, driving–they’ve been forever captured in one permanent image. The movement we see through photography becomes implied based on our knowledge of the everyday world rather than experiencing it through the image.

This series of pictures was taken in Mumbai–the city where I was born–and different places in Kerala–where my family has its roots. As I documented our travels, I loved capturing these moments of everyday movement more focused in urban areas with people walking or vehicles moving and found it fascinating to see how they juxtaposed the natural movement in scenes I could only find in the countryside, like the waves of the ocean or the sway of palm trees. However, taking these photos didn’t just serve as documentation, but as a way to connect with different parts of myself. Both of these places I call “home” are vastly different from social, cultural, and visual standpoints, but that doesn’t make either less important to my heritage. Together, they’ve shaped the lens I use to view the world around me, and I hope viewers can feel them united in my work.