Anchored in the premise that museums are sites of spectatorship and introspection, my graduate thesis, Simultaneous Realities, comprises five photo-stories that articulate the concept of simultaneous realities—coexisting modes of engagement, memory, and mediation within singular institutional spaces.

The first story, Magan—the title is a Hindi term meaning "deep absorption"—draws on Marcel Duchamp’s concept that the creative act foregrounds moments in which museum-goers, through undirected observation, become co-creators of meaning. These instances of immersion resist passive reception, underscoring the dynamic relationship existing between artwork and audience.

Vaya, the second story, explores generational differences in spectatorship. A child’s tactile, immediate engagement stands in contrast to an adult's often screen-mediated encounter. Here my work draws on French theorist Guy Debord’s critique of the spectacle, which posits that children's interactions subvert commodified modes of seeing whereas adult behaviors reflect performative consumption shaped by external validation.

The third story, Smṛti, compiles scanned recollections of museum visits collected through the Barter project. Echoing French historian Pierre Nora’s concept of lieux de mémoire, these memories depicted in this story position the museum as a living, emotional archive—less a static institution than a container of personal and collective resonance.

In Maskan, the museum becomes a surrogate home. Images of couples on quiet dates, children in café corners, and moments of rest reflect American feminist scholar Donna Haraway’s notion of situated relationality. These intimate fragments reveal the museum not just as a site of cultural authority but also one of belonging and tenderness.

Finally, Tamasha investigates screen-based spectatorship and art’s commodification. Drawing on Debord and the work of artist Lauren Purje, this story critiques the way visibility rather than insight often determines value in museum spaces.

Together these five narratives propose that museum experience is neither singular nor fixed but rather layered—shaped by immersion, memory, generational patterns, domesticity, and performance. Simultaneous Realities invites a reconsideration of the way we see and are seen within cultural spaces.