Revisiting home through snapshots

Scenic landscapes and harmonious indoors—independent photographer Anurag Banerjee’s new photo book I’m Not Here is replete with such images, making it an emotionally-stirring exploration of his idea of home. Banerjee, who hails from Shillong, moved to Mumbai about eight years ago. His relationship with the two regions, which he refers to as his two homes, influences his creative work. “I have lived a full life and yet barely lived at all,” he writes in the book. I’m Not Here was launched by Offset Projects, a Delhi-based photography archive founded by Defence Colony resident Anshika Varma, on February 20. In this interview, we speak to Banerjee about his first photo book, his memories of home, and more. Excerpts…

On collaborating with Offset Projects

The book launch was the first for everyone involved: me, Offset Bookstore as well as Devan’s [the coffee shop at Lodi Colony where the book launch took place]. None of us expected this response. We had a footfall of about 80-100 people, and we were pleasantly surprised. As far as my association with Offset goes, I couldn’t have asked for anything better. I have known Anshika and Adil Hasan [of Offset Projects], for a few years. They took care of the smallest details, which I, a first-time bookmaker, had never considered.   

On I’m Not Here

I moved to Mumbai [from Shillong] in 2013. It was only in July 2014 that I was able to visit [home] again. That is when I had begun making this work. The title stuck on since then, but the meaning has evolved.  

I have been documenting his home in Shillong since 2014 but the way I have been working has changed over time. Back in 2014, it started as a typical documentary project. Over time, as I moved away from that style of photography, this work started to change. The project started out as black and white work, and for the first two to three visits I stuck to that. Eventually, I realised I was mimicking my influences. 

My most crucial trip was the one in March, 2020. I was home for five months, the longest since I left Shillong. For the first time, I was completely sure. I knew what I was shooting. I knew the importance text plays in this work. I knew the photographer I was. Suddenly, I knew this is the work I want to create.  

On growing as an artist  

In the description, I say that this book is also my journey from adolescence to adulthood. When I began making this work I was in my early 20s, a very impressionable age. As years passed, I realised the kind of photographer I was, the kind of photos I like to create. This is why I say, this work is also a chart of my growth, both as a photographer and as a person.  

On the photo book’s title, and missing Shillong

One thing that I say is that while the actual photographs are made in Shillong, the work is actually made in Mumbai. That’s why the title I’m Not Here. It is everything that I am thinking of when I am not in Shillong. When I am stuck in the traffic in Mumbai, and there is an autorickshaw that goes blurting the horn, that is when I am thinking of the landscape and weather of Shillong.  

When people ask me what is it that you miss about Shillong? It’s the weather. The weather in Shillong is amazing all year round. In I’m Not Here, I have tried to translate that [the weather] into the photograph, and use it as sensory triggers. You see a picture and you immediately understand that this is how this place would feel at this time.