Samsul Alam Helal

His recent work Love Studio depicts the portraits of a working class community where an old studio in Dhaka transforms into a neighborhood venue to represent the dreams, hopes and desires of the factory workers, their families and unemployed neighbors. In his another portrait series on Hijra (transgender community), the camera homes in on the unfolding drama, nothing but a short razzmatazz, that reads like a narrative, and exotic hieroglyphics as the protagonists represented make dancing and singing for an absent audience, or as an end in itself.

Helal wants to tell the stories of people and especially the groups of minority and the neglected class. Through his photographs, he explores their identity, dreams and longings to raise our curiosity and question. He often likes to stage in a studio setup where dramatic moods and vibrant colors are loudly presented. In oppose to mere fiction, Helal’s work represents a reality in an alternate space.