There are cities that we occupy and there are cities that occupy us, with their alluring geography, people, culture and history. For self-taught photographer Ananth Padmanabhan, that city is Kolkata, lovingly called the “city of joy”. What was a visit to a printing press as a rookie sales manager, turned into a love affair with a city that remains close to his heart to this day.

The year was 1998 and the experience unforgettable. Ananth and his colleague were walked through the process of how a plain white roll of paper came out of the printing machine as the morning daily, or a beautifully bound Bible, or a paperback. An entire day came to an end, but the memory stayed with him — of the steady hum of the machines, of the smell of ink and sweat and of the delightful feel of fresh paper.
Swapna Printing Press Pvt. Ltd., which was established in 1978, was also where Penguin India published its first six paperbacks. This year, as the publishing house celebrates its 25th anniversary, Ananth decided to make a trip to where it all started. He went to Kolkata, took his camera along and came back with beautiful memories of the printing press.
His solo exhibition, “Calcutta: Walking in the City”, which is currently underway at the India Habitat Centre (IHC), New Delhi, features 36 photographs, most of which were taken at the same old printing press during a shoot this year . This exhibition is both a personal journey and a tribute, as a photographer, to the many years spent in publishing. And is the old name of Calcutta deliberate? “Yes, I was born in Madras and hate that it is now called Chennai. And let’s admit it, Calcutta has a nicer ring to it,” Ananth says.
No doubt Kolkata has always held a special place in his heart. But does this relationship extend beyond the printing press? “Calcutta has fascinated me since my first visit in February 1998. I can’t really pin-point, but when I got off the train from Madras and weaved my way into the city, I knew I was going to like this place. And that feeling hasn’t wavered since. When I moved to New Delhi in 1999 from Madras, I chose to live in CR Park for this very reason,” he replies.
His love for the printing process is evident from the black and white photographs (only two are in colour) on display — be it the stacks of paper neatly arranged in a tiny room or a fresh roll of paper coming out as the final product. The photographs exude old-world charm wonderfully captured with a click.
Ask him if the city he loves so much has changed in all these years and he is quick to add, “Since my maiden visit 14 years ago, I have been going back to Calcutta every year, both on work and on holiday. The city hasn’t changed for me and I think I love that. There is a huge sense of comfort in the familiar.”
Having worked in the publishing industry for more than two decades, it comes as no surprise that Ananth has a deep-rooted love for books and the written word. So what turned his attention to photography? “I was going to Stanford for a course and carried a point-and-shoot camera along, and shot pictures everyday. I must admit that I was impressed with the outcome, besides everyone who saw what I clicked. So it was a discovery for me. I began to pursue photography actively and learnt by trial and error,” he says.
The exhibition, on display at the Experimental Art Gallery at IHC, will conclude on November 10 and is open for public viewing from 10 am to
8 pm.