“Wedding photographers are typically married to the commerce of flattery,” says Shantaram. “My interests, on the other hand, lie in story-telling and the desire to document these interesting times. I imagine I’m being commissioned by National Geographic magazine to tell the story of a community seen through the hopes and aspirations of two people. I’ve shot over a hundred and fifty weddings with that imaginary brief. The work is shaping up to look like the portrait of a nation.”

That work is Matrimania, a portfolio of outtakes clients never see. The project began by accident, but then Shantaram hadn’t intended on becoming a photographer in the first place. His father tortured the family with his Minolta as many fathers do, and the technical photography workshops he attended during high school were anything but inspiring. It wasn’t until the daily drudgery of cubicle life began to gnaw at his soul that Shantaram reconsidered life’s direction. His parents were so proud of their son working in Washington, D.C.. His friends back home were buying homes and raising kids. At 28 he quit his job to study photography in Paris.