Page 16 - MASALA LITE ISSUE 90 | MARCH 2018

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THROUGH THE

CAMERA LENS

Photographer and social media

infl uencer Sukrit Srisakulchawla
shares his fascinating journey as a

Google #TeamPixel ambassador

BY CHRISTY LAU

From day one, some people know exactly what career paths to follow,
while others fi nd their passion quite by accident. It was through such a
twist of fate that Bangkok-bred Sukrit Srisakulchawla, who is currently
pursuing a Bachelor of Science Degree in Business Administration (BSBA)
at Northeastern University in Boston, found himself exploring the world
through a more creative point of view. His natural gift for the art of
photography soon led to more than 32,000 followers on his Instagram
page, @sukrits_25. He later went on to join the prestigious photography
initiative #TeamPixel by Google, where he recently enjoyed an exclusive
pass to the 2018 Sundance Film Festival. Masala fi nds out just what gets
this creative’s camera clicking.

What inspired you to become a photographer?
Growing up, I have always enjoyed the art of storytelling. I was also
a very artistic child, always drawing and painting scenes around
me. It wasn’t until my high school years that I was introduced to
photography. Up until that point, I looked at the camera only as a
device to capture moments on our family vacations, and nothing more.
When I was fi nally introduced to photography, I became quite attached
to it. The ability to capture and forever store moments, even if it
meant nothing to everyone else, was fascinating. It was art that was
instantaneous and modern, yet still forced the artist to meet a lot of
the traditional rules and concepts.
My interest in the fi eld sparked again when I was introduced to
the Instagram community in Boston. Here, I found people of diverse
backgrounds, pursuing the art passionately, not professionally, as a
shared hobby. The fact that this particular art form was accessible
enough for me to pursue, without sacrifi cing all else that I wanted
to do, is perhaps what pushed me to start taking more pictures and
sharing them online.

Why did you decide not to pursue a photography course in university?
When I was applying to universities, I never really considered
photography, but had applied to both architecture and business
programmes. I eventually chose the business route, coming to realise
that I personally did not want to spend the next few years creating art
to please a professor, rather than myself. I have found that I am most
“As photography happy with my creative work outside the classroom, rather than those
becomes more that were graded upon.

accessible, and camera What led to you becoming a social media infl uencer?
In the summer of 2015, a few months after being introduced to the
quality improves, I Instagram community in Boston, I was featured by Instagram as a
think what sets one Suggested User. That meant I would be recommended to new users
who had just signed up on the app. Through this feature, my following
apart is imagination increased drastically and eventually led to opportunities to start working
with brands. Slowly, my work started getting more recognition, fi rst by
and the willingness to my university, Northeastern University, then The Boston Globe, and later
go beyond on Boston’s Fox25 News. I often fi nd myself still questioning whether
any of it is real or all a dream, and while I may not be actively pursuing
the technicalities.” photography full-time, I am truly grateful for the experiences that I have
been fortunate enough to have had so far.

Why do you think Instagram is a good platform to showcase your work?
To me, Instagram has always been more than just about putting my
work online. It was about connecting with people who share the
same interests or experiences. I have learnt a lot through the works

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