Sonam Kapoor Instagram – You must’ve heard the phrase, “A picture is worth a thousand words.” Well, Dayanita Singh (@dayanitasingh), the self-proclaimed and highly acclaimed “bookmaker who works with photography,” lived her life by this rule – best known for her portraits of India’s urban élite and middle class. She took to photography in a major way while documenting the many moods of Zakir Hussain at his concerts across the country – a still collection that went on to become her first book: Zakir Hussain Maquet. A pioneer among photographers of her generation, Singh approaches each series as a total narrative rather than a compilation of individual experiences – standing out in a crowd where fitting in is the norm. “Why should photography be stuck to a wall?”, she often said to everyone who asked her about why her art is so engrossing. According to her, photographs aren’t meant to be stuck to a cemented wall but experienced as a story. The subjects she chooses to immortalise in pixels doesn’t just awe me, but also inspires me to look at my craft in a way I haven’t. Isolating her object of desire even in a chaotic room reminds me of my life on a film set. Of how for a shot, one must detach from the surrounding but also add to it, so beautifully. How has your favourite artist inspired you? Is there anyone whose hustle you want to emulate? Leave the deets in comments for me to read! #StrokesOfSubstance#WomenInArt#DayanitaSingh#FemalePhotographers#FeminismInIndia