South Asian Identity In The Spotlight

Photographer Simrah Farrukh

There is an emphasis on South Asian culture through the work of 21-year old photographer Simrah Farrukh, as well as issues that women face such as domestic violence and lack of representation in media. Through this interview with VICE, she speaks about her identity and inspirations that fuel her photographic work.

Here’s a short excerpt from her interview:

What kinds of issues fuel your work?

My work has always been based on women’s empowerment. In the past, I focused on colorism and domestic violence. A lot of my work is regarding women.

Photograph from "‘Ek Ladki’ series

What is a piece of work you’re most proud of?

I think it would definitely be the ‘Daughters’ series. It was something I can relate to. Even the comments I got back from it made me realize people were relating the photos to their own relationships with their mothers. It brought people a sense of warmth and nostalgia. I found the emotions between the subjects to be so pure and genuine, and this definitely came through in the photos. It was staged to some extent, but the emotions brought out between the models were real.

Photograph from ‘Daughters’ series.

What do you want to focus on in your future projects?

I wanna touch more on my religious side. I want to integrate Islam into my photos, just as much as I’ve incorporated the feeling of what it means to be South Asian.

To read more of her Simrah Farrukh’s interview, click here.

Photograph from ‘Fijiana’ series