It is hardly surprising that CFL is my home in many ways, given that I spent thirteen years there. But, it is not just that. While it seems somewhat redundant to say that my schooling years played a defining role in shaping me, I cannot deny that I have gone back to my education at CfL as a reference point for various choices that I have made over the years. And, in making these choices, I have very much appreciated the space to pause and reflect in situations that are otherwise teeming with pressures and expectations. This is most definitely a quality that is rooted in my schooling, where the attempt to be watchful of ourselves and our surroundings became as much a part of our daily lives as any other school activity.
Having said this, there were periodic bouts of unhappiness and dissatisfaction at various points in my time at CFL; home-sickness, an urge to experience the ‘freedom’ of the outside world, disagreement about certain stances and boundaries… Yet, there was something that kept me there. In hindsight, I suspect it was the sense of thinking together as a community and listening to one another that bound me to the place. And it is this sense of thinking together that I value and hope to inculcate in all my interactions.
This was the reason that I chose to study Philosophy at St Stephen’s College, where the class sizes were extremely small and the course was discussion oriented. Post this, I moved back to Bangalore and followed the urge to explore photography. I now work as a freelancer, mainly in the fields of photography and film. I most enjoy working on themes connected to humanities and nature.
My work and interests are strongly based on exposures that took place during my senior school years, which was the most vivid period of my education. The liberty to design my own programme allowed me to fuse a handpicked variety of academic subjects along with other activities, including photography.
My biggest learning from CFL’s way of education, might be the idea that the process of questioning is itself relevant, sometimes more so than specific questions or answers themselves. This idea yields a sensitive and receptive mind, which for me, is fundamental to how I would like to navigate my path.