This shoot idea began as I was walking out of Iceland Warehouse loaded up with ice cream and other frozen goods to make it through the summer heatwave. As the sun hit the top of the Krispy Kremes store I thought it looked kinda cool and retro. Add the cinema and bowling alley and we’ve got a 50s Americana theme going on. This is what I saw in my head…
A few Facebook posts and messages later, and we have this… Now published in @volant_magazine
Photography, hairstyling, male grooming: Tas Chowdhury
Model: @tapas_deb_roy of J’Adore Models
Denim jacket/ blue jeans/ black jeans: All Saints
Leather jacket: Beyond Retro
Sunglasses: Ray Bans
Boots: Doc Martens
The best part of the shoot for me was the reaction from my 6 year old son. He couldn’t sleep that night and snuggled up to me on the sofa while I was editing.
When he saw the photos, he got very excited, with 100 questions coming out all at once “Wow! He looks so cool and relaxed. I’ve not seen anyone like that here before. Do you think I could ever be as confident as him one day? If I became a model, could I still be an inventor?”
I explained to my son that Tapas is also training as a dentist, and talked about how he balances both roles. Cue more excitement from my boy, as he realised that he didn’t have to focus on just one goal or dream, he really could have it all.
As I ushered my excited little boy off to bed, he ran back, put his head round my door and said “And you know the best bit, mum? He’s brown like me.”
Representation matters.