Making Space

This project is an exploration of belonging and the emotional landscapes we carry when we leave behind our safe space. I have always felt that a part of me remained in the space I left, an invisible tether connecting me to what was familiar. Instead of retreating into solitude, I chose to turn outward—to listen, to observe, and to connect with others who are navigating a similar transition.

Through photography, I document people I know who have left their safe spaces and are now in a new environment, trying to make it their own while navigating an ocean of emotions. The act of leaving, of resettling, is not just a physical transition but a deeply internal one. In these images, I seek to capture that process.

A house, a bed, a private room—these spaces become sanctuaries, places of rest and vulnerability. I was drawn to photographing individuals in their intimate settings, where they have begun to create their own version of safety and comfort. I wanted to witness the elements that hold them together, to see reflections of my own experience within theirs, as though looking into a mirror. By being invited into their spaces, I positioned myself not just as a photographer but as a listener, an observer of the unspoken emotions embedded in their everyday surroundings.

The people in this project—Disha from India, Maha from India, Tanaka from Africa, Nayaab from Pakistan, Noha from Israel, Catalina from Columbia, and Shloka from India—are individuals I have known since my time here. My relationship with them was an essential factor in choosing them as subjects. I felt a certain thread of sadness connecting us, a shared struggle to carve out a sense of home in a place that still feels new. This emotional undercurrent led me to this project, a search for rest and understanding through these photographs.

Throughout the process, I oscillated between documentary and staged photography. When I sensed a narrative floating within a space, I occasionally intervened, incorporating elements from their surroundings to shape a visual story. This balance between documentation and intention allows the work to be both personal and constructed, a reflection of the ways we curate our own identities in new spaces.