How can archive images be used today to challenge power structures? Walid Saddam was born in Kishoreganj, Bangladesh, in 1985. He has worked alternately as a rickshaw puller, teacher, salesman, street hawker, a poet and musician; currently, he is a final year photography student at the Pathshala South Asian Media Institute. In his works, the rhythms and colour of his country meet, mixing influences from music and poetry as much the visual world he’s surrounded by. Currently, he is working on projects on two of the toughest problems facing his country: the Rohingya refugee crisis and the alarming rise of rape cases in recent years in Bangladesh. Saddam’s work is presented at the Archives of Persistence exhibition at Chobi Mela, Asia’s first and largest photo festival, until 9 March in Dhaka.
