Episodes of Life

Hi! I’m Alekha Chugani,a freelance photographer. I love all forms of film photography,can watch cat memes all day,love making mental & visual mood boards. I used to believe that we live in a world where facing contradictions always led to concurrence and the only way to justify such experiences was acceptance & shedding tears out of confusion & anxiety. I stuck to the later before someone told me to try photography ‘cause I seemed to have a good eye for capturing things’. When in reality,I only gave it a shot ‘cause I learnt the VSCO aesthetic way before it became a trend,this was 2016. Whenever someone asked about my ambition, becoming a photographer wasn’t an answer. Yes,it is one of those clichéd journeys where before picking up a camera, I picked up various jobs in fashion because my ultimate goal was to work in a magazine. Eventually I did. My boss was stern,proficient & kind. Before I left the publication, I took her advice on pursuing photography ‘cause she believed I had scope. Thus, in Nov 2017,I decided to move forward to pursue fashion photography as my primary goal. I borrowed a basic Canon 1200D DSLR from my parents’ office & never looked back. Fast forward to 2020,I still use that camera. Since then,all of the important milestones that I have achieved are taken from that same camera & when I have a work shoot,I rent. Everything else is from the same gear. Which is not a lot & that’s okay! I told myself that it’s okay to not have a degree in photography just yet. Whatever I create speaks a lot about where I come from. Both my parents are artists & today it seems that my family has nurtured the art of being artistic; always creating & having a story to tell. I’d be lying if I said that the thought of upgrading my gear doesn’t tempt me or makes me feel inferior. I have to constantly remind myself that my work reflects my ability to create,not with what I create. Everything else is secondary,but our ideas are just that,ours! I insist that you invest as much time as needed in the initial stages of generating the core idea. A healthy dose of procrastination is both essential and crucial for us as artists. Self-brewed originality always trumps self-doubt. The key is getting attached to the idea of learning rather than becoming. The more I understood the depth of that statement the easier it got to navigate my path into this field. Being a freelancer is not easy,so to make it less daunting the first thing I did was create an invoice,made a signature logo/font/color,the fun stuff you know? The next step,writing down the terms and conditions;write a draft and have a lawyer look at one. Register yourself as a small business and finally,the holy grail of any freelance business,NETWORK. Everyone talks about consistency in posting content but the same rule applies in communication. Get to know your community. I cannot stress this enough. Most of us are brimming with ideas that may sound weird to people but to us it’s exceptional. Even an awkward encounter or a small talk is progress. Experienced it. Loved it. Still living through it. Each image unravels layers of meaning or just hits the right spot or sometimes we hit a wall with it all. I used to hate having an artists’ block,but I found myself creating images out of random things at home to push me out of it. The process made me understand why it’s important to draw a line between learning & getting influenced by what I see online. I insist you try it once. Reflect. I would like to conclude by sharing something I wrote down,“Look for stories that tickle you rather than chasing inspiration like it’s a golden ticket for great content and online validation. This world needs artists like you to amplify stories that become a part of our history.” Keep creating. A

Sports has always been an integral part of my life. Whether it was playing the demo version of FIFA 06 or cheering my favourite player Ryan Giggs,sports was my drug. Watching India win the 2007 T20 World Cup or the 2012 Champions Trophy,made my blood rush. Tennis was like royalty and watching THE FAB 4 play gave me a sense of being on the same field as them. Discovering the NBA was magical,and Kobe Bryant was my star. One must never judge a book by its cover. I may not seem like your stereotypical sports fan but sports is everything I live for. When I was 11,living in Delhi,I was part of a Football academy. But my Dad’s job often took us all over the country & stability was never an option. Within a month of joining the club,we moved to another place. I still remember my coach’s words-“You might not have the talent, but with hard work,you will get farther than you can imagine!” After shifting to Jodhpur,I found myself excelling in lawn tennis. I was playing in the regionals and even in the state levels. On our next shift,I enrolled in a tennis camp. On one particular occasion,I ended up injuring my elbow. So I stopped physical activities altogether. To fill this gap,I took up swimming but my hydrophobia caused me to quit again! I then suffered a series of injuries & things took a turn. The first incident took place on my trip to Delhi,in 8th grade. While deboarding a train my left leg slipped into the gap between the train & the platform,straining the ligament in my ankle. Participating in school functions left my ankle in a bad state. But I was still into sports and would actively take part in it. Fast forward to October 2015. Things seemed to be going great. I was the bandmaster of my school & was going to lead the March Past contingent on sports day. I was elated! On my day off,right before the school events began,my tutor cancelled the class & I finally felt my day was looking up. I rushed out of my house to play football. But during the match,my worst nightmare came true. My knee rotated 180. Turns out I had helped my team score by passing the ball to a teammate right before I fell to the ground. The pain was unbearable but my teammates thought that I was putting up a show,to amass sympathy. I had to be carried back home. Turns out it wasn't a regular fracture;no accurate diagnosis was done ‘cause I was scared to go to a doctor,afraid I could no longer be a part of my school events. A year later,I thought I was healed. But an MRI test revealed that I had damaged my ligament & my meniscus was torn which led to clots and internal bleeding. I could no longer bend my knees beyond 90º. My neglect at the time of the injury had resulted in this mess. This episode had left me heartbroken. I could feel cracks emerging in my wall of confidence & self-image. FALLING DOWN IS HOW WE GROW, STAYING DOWN IS HOW WE DIE! On transferring to Pune in 11th grade,I started playing Basketball. I was horrible at it & a voice in my head kept nagging me. The last 2 years of school were as frustrating as it is for anyone. When I realised that carrying the team on my shoulders was burdening,I just started to play for fun and live in the moment. At this point,I had already sustained multiple ankle injuries, but I did not want it to become an obstacle between me & my passion. Sometimes,I would get too into my head,thinking I wasn't good enough. What if I miss the shot? I finally decided to channel my passion for sports from playing to writing about it ‘cause here's the thing,we all have fears but the strength lies in not letting them take control over us. If I can be out there playing with a knee that still hurts like a maniac,you don't have to give up either. Your dreams don’t have to remain dreams,just because life shoved you down a few times. If you think you’re no good,remember a dream and the zeal to work for it is all that one needs,’cause “what doesn't kill you makes you stronger!”