Shooting her way through life

She’s a dentist! No, she’s a photographer!!

Completely discrediting the saying, ‘ Jack of all trades, master of none’, is Namrata Rupani!

And she continues to inspire many with her work. Having studied to become a dentist and running a successful practice for years in the city, life took a turn for her when she came across her calling – photography. She realised then, that she had to follow it to get in touch with her true self. Namrata is an accomplished photographer who is also a Pediatric Dental Surgeon.

In the beginning, it was all about enjoying the entire creative process while shooting the natural surroundings – be it a gorgeous sunrise or the architecture of the timeless monuments like the Qutub Shahi tombs. But it has now become a full fledged profession  and she is well known in the city for her photography skills.

She reminisced how each shot helped her to be fully present in the current moment. Capturing the few minutes of the sunrise seemed like time had stopped as she was completely enjoying the whole scene in front of her. Even her firm is aptly named – Capture Life 

Isn’t it true, all of us get so busy running around in our daily lives, we never really stop to appreciate the present moment!

We decided to meet up at her studio. A space that is split between –  two things she does and rather well, (I must add) – into a Dental Clinic and a Photography and printing space. Added bonus: I got a portrait picture clicked by her.

I admit, my first reaction was, “Wow, what a studio! Omg, a dentist’s chair (sparking from a childhood fear of dentists). But a dentist like her and I would willingly sit without any fear on that chair, if required. I could make out clearly that she was as passionate about her dental practice as she is about capturing the perfect shot.

She makes it quite apparent that women are born to multitask and can give their 100% to each role with just the right amount of  dedication, self motivation and time management. She is also mother to two lovely daughters.

Namrata is doing complete justice to her professional endeavours and her personal life and somehow still finds time to do workshops to help train aspiring photographers, practice kathak with her guru Mangala Bhatt and travel to wonderful places to hone her photography skills.

She has also ventured into the fine art print business and makes fine art prints and provides design and print solutions for various clients from all over India.

It’s that very multi tasking perspective that Namrata shared on stage at TEDxNalsarUniversity. She explained just how far photography can travel from going beyond a passion to being able to connect with hundreds of people through a powerful form of art and expression.

She does a lot of professional photography and printing jobs, but one thing that remains close to her heart is the time she spends photographing the ancient monuments of our city like the Qutub Shahi Tombs, her early morning drives to the lake and her trip to Leh – Ladakh.

 

Her work has been displayed at various exhibitions, making their way to all kinds of different corners, including being commissioned by L&T to document the making of the Metro Rail in India,and her work of shooting almost 100 weddings including international projects in Malaysia. Her recent solo exhibition – “Stories in Stone” was exhibited at the Goethe Zentrum, Hyderabad. It was a documentation of heritage structures in Hyderabad  like the Golkonda Fort, Qutub Shahi tombs and Chowmahalla Palace  and a few of Jantar Mantar and the Qutub Minar , New Delhi.

 

What really struck me as beautiful were her ethereal shots of the dilapidated structures that still evoke tremendous emotion. I absolutely loved the shots she clicked of the tombs in the reflection of water giving it an absolutely new perspective.

She embodies a spirit that has a never say die attitude and she continues to strive for new endeavours and experiences. With her, you never know what’s in store at the next corner. I wish you all the best  and may you follow your ‘life passion’ always!

Her parting shot, “You can give life to just about anything through photography.”

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The blog is a part of the series of The Human Side – A reflective series on following your passion