Winning
Photo Stories
50 Hour Photography Challenge

Made a film in 50 hours, won million hearts!
Each year, over 35,000 filmmakers from more than 39 countries battle it out to grab the IFP trophy. While some make the cut, some go back with a bag full of weekend memoirs.
Watch the winning films from last 11 years of 50 Hour Filmmaking Challenge and tell us how much you love em!
Season 12
3 Photo Series Category
Theme - Old Everything
Manisha Agarwal
Platinum Photo Of The Year
Genres - Minimalist, Monochrome, Portrait.
City - Jaipur, India
Story 1
This is a story about eternal love – a life cycle. Two strangers from different paths come together, fall in love and grow
old. Sooner or later, one of them fades away before the other. But the love remains. Always.
Story 2
This is a story of the 1860 Carl Zeiss camera you'd spot on the Jaipur street near Hawa Mahal. It has a darkroom, fixer,
developer and film box all inside the 20 kg apparatus. I wanted to show the modern world through these old lens - the
antique piece, the process, and the final photograph.
Story 3
I have tried to draw parallels between the young and old in this photo story. The contrast in mannerisms and the way of
being – basically a study on the different yet similar old and new worlds.
Prachi Nandwana
Gold Photo Of The Year
Genres - Macro, Minimalist, Monochrome.
City - Mumbai, India
Story 1
This story depicts how time takes its toll on everything & what was once a mere object has now become a memory passed on from one generation to the next.
Story 2
Even if these decades old architectural marvels seem to be brushed off in new colors, they still set an example for our modern standards.
This story is a proof that the most beautiful things in life are often simple.
Story 3
This story is an attempt to recreate the noir & the texture of an old film camera.
It speaks about culture, communication & commute of a man on a usual day in Khotachiwadi, Mumbai.
Yatharth singh
Silver Photo Of The Year
Genres - Portrait, Minimalist,
Monochrome .
City - Khairagarh, India
Story 1
Nana and I share the same perspective about life, through our camera and through our thoughts. He is the first person in our family who acted on his passion of Photography. His pictures are so amazing and elegant that even I get mesmerized sometimes. Its been 80 years now and he captured all of his life, family and every moment through this camera. The generation has now changed with me taking overthe mantel, but the thoughts we share are the same.
Story 2
Nature beholds us, from born to death Just like that our body changes its form and its converted into the form of nature to accept its true form.
Story 3
Cassettes in its entirety represents our childhood. Remnants of a forgotten era though which we all grew.
From the time of old, we used to wait for a new cassette to come out, winding and rewinding to listen to the songs over and over again.
Now, in the era of streaming, are we even stopping to enjoy a song, are we even letting it overwhelm us, as cassette music used to do?
Deep Kadam
Bronze Photo Of The Year
Genres - Monochrome, Portrait, Macro.
City - Dubai, UAE
Story 1
Standing by the shores of Dubai Creek, one of the many routes to travel back decades into the quaint history is the infamous abra, translating to ‘to cross’ from Arabic. The city’s oldest mode of water transportation, these motorized traditional half rafts are religiously used between the marvellous 14-kilometre stretch of Deira and Bur Dubai. Charging only 1 AED per trip, abra drivers still stand strong amidst the glitz and glamour of the city. The other long term creek residents are the shipment ‘dhows’ which proudly carrying forward 67 years of trade legacy as they embark from the city’s first cargo port.
Story 2
Shot at the Ghost Village, located in the outskirts of Dubai, bordering Sharjah this series illustrates the concept of old is gold. To break through the modern clutter of tech, trends and transitions one has to dial back in history to seek inspiration. To figure out the nuances of life, one needs to fine tune. To stride forward, one needs to dial back to reconnect with the beautiful, eerie mess of pasts. This location, also known as the ‘buried village’ abandoned decades ago by Al Kutbii tribe for reasons unknown to-date was the perfect piece to complete the puzzle in sketching this concept.
Story 3
What may seem tiny, minuscule and completely irrelevant today could be the reason for your next big thing! It is not said without reason to pay attention to details. The craft of an artist lies in the shadows of his work. However, being too cautious takes away from the thrill of experimenting. So experiment by tweaking and playing with the details yourself so that you do not become a puppet at the mercy of someone else’s actions but only yours. The props for this shoot were sourced from the Dubai equivalent of a कबाड़ी वाला!
Shristi Khaitan
#5 Photo Of The Year
Genres - Portrait, Monochrome, Minimalist.
City - Mumbai, India
Story 1
I shot this series because I wanted to show an old memory that you don't even know that you remember.
Sometimes that when suddenly you remember that old crush. But you don't want anything out of it, you just want to remember that old feeling which you felt when you were in that moment.
In the first picture, I showed a writer's daily routine, where he read something before going to bed.
In the second picture, he finds a picture of a girl who he remembers from past and don't know how to feel, because that is an old feeling for him.
In the 3rd picture, he went to sleep but this night he has smile on his face.
Story 2
I was very fascinated with Raja Ravi Varma's paintings. When I got the chance to shoot portrait and the theme is “Old Everything” then I had to try and shoot my favourite artist's work.
Raja Ravi Varma, also known as “The Father of Modern Indian Art” was an Indian painter of the 18th century who attained fame and recognition for portraying scenes from the epics of the Mahabharat and Ramayana.
Story 3
For minimalist, I tried playing with the lights, pattern, and textures. I have a character who is an inspiring writer. He is very old school friend of mine and likes to explore and find inspiration in the outside world.
5 Photo Series Category
Theme - Old Everything
Kartik Agrawal
Platinum Photo Of The Year
Genres - Monochromatic, Portrait, Minimalist.
City - Varanasi, India
Story 1
TLove is always old, because you live a millenium in every second you spend in love. Rains, gajra, bicycle rides, anklets, boat adventures maybe old forms of love but the purest ones. When you could identify her with the sound of her anklet. Riding the rollercoaster of happiness and sadness on a bicycle of love, putting a gajra because all you want is to blossom her with a smile. Pouring your heart out, while it rains; talking about life and beyond while you wait for sunset on a boat.
Rust on these forms of love has preserved their purity and will do so till eternity.
Story 2
Days go by, and years pass, but that which is timeless remains as it is. Much has changed around the workshop, but the clay and pot remain there, along with some of the immortal works of art they produced. The only thing that has changed is the hand that made these artworks. Like those ancient stories passed down by word of mouth, the skills of making these artworks are passed to each generation.
Unlike most fleeting objects turning to dust, the workshop stands firm in the face of changing aeons.
Story 3
Lonely is the road of him who has fought the race of life and beaten by technology. What is left for him who has lost much to time? Friends. How does he confess his emotions to those remaining friends? He uses the letters that have stood the test of time just like him. Little does he know about the postman delivering it, doing an antiquated job replaced by metal they call mobiles. In his rage, he throws the letters from his otherwise empty bag in the blowing breeze, leaving the person solitary, waiting for a response that shall never arrive.
Rajesh Dulera
Gold Photo Of The Year
Genres - Portrait, Monochrome, Light trails.
City - Ambarnath, India
Story 1
TDay life of the local individuals of the Dards (Local Ladakhi’s), Living a medieval and nostalgic life but also being enjoyable at the same time. The community of Dard’s being very ethnic and isolated comes from millennials of years ago from the Tibetians. Here are some portraits of the following from the Leh Market
Story 2
Here's a sequence of life in the Leh Monastery of Buddhism followed by the ancient locals of Leh. All the practices done have been passing on from thousands of years.
Picture 1 describes the children having their food in the morning, Picture 2 is a local Buddhist studying the ancient history and culture of Buddhism, Pictures 3 and 4 are the children and the Lorthews taking a tour of the temple, and lastly a picture of the Monastery.
Story 3
A compilation of Light trails captured at the land of Leh. The first 2 pictures of cruising the light stick along the car and the rest 3 pictures of the trail light of cars followed by a view of the city. Light trails photography features increasing the range of shutter speed range from thousandths of a second to many minutes. Doing the following causes a phenomenon by the moving source of light which freezes in its place causing the light trail effect.
Swaraj V Patil
Silver Photo Of The Year
Genres - Monochromatic, Portrait, Minimalist.
City - Mumbai, India
Story 1
Auto-rickshaws play an important role in urban transport in India. Despite this role, auto-rickshaws and their drivers face considerable criticism from the public, the media and policy makers. There is a contentious public debate about the perceived faults of auto-rickshaws and their drivers, and the policies to address these issues in Indian cities. Because of the advancements in public transportation Auto- rickshaw drivers are facing a lot of financial problems but nobody wants to talk about it. My objective is to provide balance and nuance to this debate, and to enable the perspective of drivers to be more effectively considered, along with that of auto-rickshaw users and the wider travelling public, in policy-making.
Story 2
Kumbharwada is nearly a hundred years old settlement which was primarily established by the immigrants from Saurashtra(now Gujarat) who were potters. They inhabited the place and carried on with their generations-old occupation of pottery. Now there are around ten thousand families who earn their livelihood by making artefacts out of clay and selling them in the markets. Ten thousand families work day and night in suffocating ambience under shabby roofs to make a living. Elders pass down their skill to the younger generation and so on. This is how the 12 acres area of Kumbharwada sustained from the last century and is still flourishing. Although the advent of Chinese products in the market has slowed down the business there, people who are trying to preserve our culture still prefer Diya's and matkas made by the kumbhars of Kumbharwada.
Story 3
Today's world is completely different from the world that existed in the period of the Ramayana and Mahabharata. But in both, the era people loved the entertainment. They tried to get entertainment by doing different things. In Ancient India people listened to classical music and liked classical dance, there were also some sports like fishing boating, archery, martial arts, painting, horse riding, hunting, narrating stories street play, dramas, making sculptures were their favorite entertainment among them. In the modern era men is more creative and have more technological knowledge, through which he has been influenced to invent many ways of entertainment. When you compare the entertainment in ancient times and now there is a rapid change in the method of entertaining people. though some of the ancient methods of entertainment exist today but in a modified manner. Significant development can be observed in terms of modes of entertainment over the years. But what remains stagnant is that human beings urge for happiness and love for entertainment. The story of entertainment is never-ending as it is not a mode of operation but a mode of life.
Arun Moras
Bronze Photo Of The Year
Genres - Minimalism, Portraits, Monochrome.
City - Mumbai, India
Story 1
When the pandemic hit us all, I realized the importance of relationships, more importantly, the roles that we play in lives of the people around us. getting caught in the realm of this chaotic city makes us forget the basic aspect of valuing time or relationships.
My lockdown was essentially spent capturing the lives of the people i was living with my mom who was forever in the kitchen, my granny who really loved her side of the bed and my lockdown baby niece who'll one day be thankful for documenting her life.
I'm their custodian of memories!
Story 2
Genghis (my cat) & I share a very unusual relationship!
I cannot fathom my life without him! there have been instances where I've practically burnt my savings just to keep him in my life. and I'd do it over a million times again, because he has taught me to never give up! humans, when they grow old, they apparently become wiser, but my cat, in his mysterious ways has taught me love, compassion and the willingness to not quit in life or people! when you meet him, you'll realize that he's a dog spirit chillin in a cat bod!
Story 3
Remembering the time that families had spent together during the lockdown, in the "post-covid' world, we went on the rat race again and slowly seemed to missing out on quality time! so through this photo series, i caught hold of a mother-daughter duo who obliged to do the shenanigans, this time for the camera and the mom in the photos is clearly having a ball of a time!
The daughter in the photo had to become the pamperer and the mom was a pamperee. I'm not even sure if those words exist, but hey! draw4 has destroyed lives, okay?
Harshal Surve
#5 Photo Of The Year
Genres - Portrait, Monochromatic, Minimalist.
City - Mumbai, India
Story 1
A part of everyone’s ordinary life portrayed in their natural habitat which tells about their life.
Story 2
Story between old and young showcasing a wish in their life in different form.
Story 3
Colourful adds beauty to living as well as non-living things, it is all an art.