In Husain memory: Nihar Majumdar (left), an artist from Jalpaiguri, prepares a sketch in memory of MF Husain on Wednesday. The artist, who sketched the outline of the picture, invited local people to fill the 8ft long canvas with colours. Picture by Biplab Basak

Gangtok, July 6: Sikkim will celebrate the World Photography Day on August 19 for the first time with a weeklong photo exhibition, the entries for which have been sought from within and outside the state.

The event will be organised by a local artist under the banner of Vividh Kala Akademy Sikkim (VIKAS).

“Apart from local entries we will be inviting photographers from other north-eastern states, Calcutta, Mumbai and other cities of the country to submit their photos under various themes for the event. The photographers can post their pictures or email them to us,” said retired civil engineer Kiran Rasaily, the organiser.

This is the first time that the World Photography Day is being celebrated in Sikkim, Rasaily, who is also a painter, musician and a photographer, said. He added that VIKAS, an institution where students can learn music, performing arts, painting and photography, will start from next year. “Though VIKAS will start from February, the World Photography Day will be our first event,” Rasaily said.

He added that for the past 20 years the World Photography Day is being celebrated on August 19 to mark the invention of Daguerreotype, a photographic process developed by Louis Daguerre in 1939.

“This time, we have constituted an award for the World Photography Day exhibits in the memory of late Tseten Tashi, one of the foremost photographers of Sikkim,” said Rasaily.