Vicky Roy Photography

Vicky was born in an impoverished family in the village of Purlia, West Bengal. A poor tailor’s son with six siblings, he had no resources as his father whatsoever.

At the young age of eleven in 1998, Vicky fled from home and reached Delhi. He lived on the railway platform for the more than a year. Initially, he worked as a rag picker, after which he worked in a dhaba. Salam Balak Trust (SBT), an organization working for street children, rescued Vicky in 1999 and enrolled him in school. Once at SBT he got opportunities that he never had before.

Dixie Benjamin, a British photographer asked Vicky to join him as an assistant on a photo shoot around Old Delhi. This is when Vicky actually got addicted to the camera and enrolled at the Triveni Kala Sangam for an intensive course in photography. Later, he joint famous portrait-specialist photographer Anay Mann as an assistant and learnt a lot from him.

Having called the streets his home, Vicky is a master at capturing the street life – he treats a subject so easy to sensationalize with great maturity and the sensitivity in his work is unparalleled. In 2007, he held his first solo exhibition titled, “Street Dream” at India Habitat Centre, supported by British High Commission. His works have been exhibited extensively in India and overseas in England and South Africa.

In 2008, Ramchander Nath Foundation (RNF) nominated Vicky for a mentorship program by the US based Maybach Foundation (MF), through which he will work on the photo-documentation of the reconstruction of the World Trade Center in New York. Out of numerous applications, from all over the world, Vicky is among the four participants and the only one from South Asia.

This is a six-month residency program and is scheduled to begin in February 2009 and Vicky will be leaving by mid-February. On his return he will hold his second solo show in Delhi. Vicky is a real-life example of courage, resilience and effective mentorship.