Born in 1985, Vasantha Yogananthan lives and works in Paris. His photographic practice addresses the space between documentary and fiction. His projects are developed over long periods of time and he only works with analog cameras. Besides the aesthetic, he is deeply attached to film photography for its slow – almost philosophical – process.
A Myth of Two Souls | Early Times
A seven-chapter tale first recorded by the Sanskrit poet Valmiki around 300 BC, The Ramayana is one of the founding epics of Hindu mythology. Since 2013, Yogananthan has been traveling from north to south India, retracing the itinerary of the epic’s heroes. Between fiction and reality, he deliberately blurs the lines through multiple aesthetic approaches: color, hand-painted and illustrated photographs compose the layers of this timeless story. This first book addresses the beginnings: it tells of the youth and education of Rama, son of King Dasharatha, and of Sita, daughter of King Janaka, who do not yet know each other but are destined to meet and fall in love.
A Myth of Two Souls | The Promise
A seven-chapter tale first recorded by the Sanskrit poet Valmiki around 300 BC, The Ramayana is one of the founding epics of Hindu mythology. Since 2013, Yogananthan has been traveling from north to south India, retracing the itinerary of the epic’s heroes. Between fiction and reality, he deliberately blurs the lines through multiple aesthetic approaches: color, hand-painted and illustrated photographs compose the layers of this timeless story. This second book celebrates the love between Rama and Sita, the two main characters of the story. Their union, a festive but challenging event, is strongly embedded in the collective imagination in India and Nepal.
A Myth of Two Souls | Exile
A seven-chapter tale first recorded by the Sanskrit poet Valmiki around 300 BC, The Ramayana is one of the founding epics of Hindu mythology. Since 2013, Yogananthan has been traveling from north to south India, retracing the itinerary of the epic’s heroes. Between fiction and reality, he deliberately blurs the lines through multiple aesthetic approaches: color, hand-painted and illustrated photographs compose the layers of this timeless story. The end of chapter two announces that Rama is banished from the kingdom, forced to live in exile during fourteen years.The third chapter tells about Rama’s life on the road, where he is joined by Sita and his brother Lakshmana.
A Myth of Two Souls | Afterlife
Afterlife is centered around the bloody war between the army of Ravana and the army of Rama. As its title suggests, the chapter deals with death and reincarnation. With Rama’s cruelty finally revealed, the series can be read as a visual exploration of one man’s descent into the darkness of the soul. Although the pictures were shot in Rajasthan and Tamil Nadu over two editions of Dussehra — the Indian festival celebrating the victory of good over evil — they do not document the festivities. They focus on the trance people try to reach night after night, as if during one week they were allowed to escape their bodies to become somebody else.
