Paper short abstract:

This paper aims to explore the representations built by Pathshala's photographers. Through analyses of their photos and discourses I'll reflect on how these photographers are imagining their country and with whom they are seeking dialogue to build their own representation of Bangladesh.

Paper long abstract:

"An independent media institute. Inclusive. Innovative. Independent." is what we see entering Pathshala: The South Asian Media Academy's website. Started in 1998 with a three-year World Press Photo educational initiative, more and more photographers are graduating from the school interested in building their own images of Bangladesh. Many of the themes portrayed are related to the Independence War and the emergence of a country based on a majority of Bengalis Muslims. Thus, we'll find a lot of photo essays on the "freedom fighters" and on minority groups such as the Biharis, the Rohingyas and the indigenous communities of the Chittagong Hill Tracts, beyond the madrassas. Global issues like climate changes and shipbreaking are also being photographed. How are these photographers imagining their country and with whom they are seeking dialogue to build their own representations of Bangladesh? Facing the contradictory desire to participate in the global photographic market and of changing the image the "western world" has about them, they have to make negotiations that pushes analysis away from the simplistic dualist approach that puts "us" and "them" into opposing fields and show us a range of interesting reflections on the contemporary Bangladesh imaginary. Through the analysis of these photos and discourses, and based on a cross-cultural comparative research between Brazil and Bangladesh, this paper will discuss these (re)presentations as well as the displacements I made to construct my own perspective on this reflection. The concepts of identity building, otherness and photo-activism will also be addressed.