Dasuni Choudhary Photography

Who are you? This may the hardest question that anyone will answer. At interviews we are asked to tell a little bit about ourselves. But we usually hide the real things and tell them things they would find interesting. But actually defining yourself is beyond our capabilities because it is hard to tell who we actually are.  

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I have very long hair. I know it and so does everyone else. That is why I chose myself to be the character of this image. The word “identity” got me thinking about who I am or how I characterize myself. And a physical description (my hair) was the first thing that popped into my head. People who do not know me reference me as “the girl with really long hair”. Personally, I do not find this offensive but I do find it interesting: something as normal as hair is my main attention-catching aspect.

The central idea to this image is the thought that cutting my hair would make me more “normal”. Having long hair is a struggle and can be very challenging to maintain. There are many instances in which having shorter hair would be in my favor and make my life easier. But having short hair would make me fit and I would become just another face in the crowd. There is a constant struggle within me that fights between wanting to fit in and standing out.

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Having a physical aspect like hair being the first thing noticed about me makes me feel as if I am not seen as anything more than “the girl with really long hair”. But it gives me a chance to spread knowledge and express why I keep my hair which is something that is important to me.

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If I had a chance to re-shoot this image I would try to angle the scissors in a more vertical direction. But I think it is evident that real scissors are being help up to my hair which really catches the attention of viewers and instills some anxiety within them (with just one snip all of it could be gone).