“I recall feeling a profound sense of anticipation when I captured the quintessential aerial shot at a Reliance refinery nearly a decade ago. In my quest for the perfect photograph, I climbed a water tank, captured the image and felt a deep sense of satisfaction. I was unaware that the endeavour would turn me into a target for a swarm of bees. As I turned to climb down the tank, a swarm—or, more precisely, a storm—of bees enveloped me. I tried to flee, but all I received in return were more stings.”

As Mr. Pavan Mehta showcases his remarkable collection of 900 cameras—ranging from a Yashica from the 1960s to a Rolleiflex dating back to 1905—he recounts the above incident as one of the defining moments of his photographic journey. He follows it with another story, equally compelling but deeply personal that traces the history of his family's enduring relationship with photography.

Mehtas at the Maharaja’s ServiceAmarnath Mehta, a young man from Gurdaspur, travelled to Dalhousie, where a member of the military introduced him to the intricate craft of photography. In 1915, he began documenting Srinagar, establishing his studio on a houseboat on the Jhelum. As the studio expanded, it went on to preserve countless moments from Gulmarg and Pahalgam in Kashmir, extending its reach to Rawalpindi and Murree, now in Pakistan.Before Partition, the Mehtas held the prestigious position of official photographers to Maharaja Hari Singh, the last reigning Maharaja of Jammu and Kashmir. In the early 1940s, amid the upheaval of the Second World War, authorities in Srinagar restricted the sale of photographic film to one roll per person to curb hoarding and the black market that often accompanies scarcity. A historical photograph of Europeans queuing for film remains preserved in the studio's collection.

Following India's independence, Amarnath established a studio in Connaught Place in 1948, while the studio in........

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