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[MOPAYS STORIES]
Paul Choy, a vivid storyteller
“You cannot learn a somersault by sitting at a desk. You have to get up and jump.” This is exactly what Paul Choy did. This renowned photographer turned his life into an everlasting trail of adventures when he decided to leave his desk job and find his drive in life. Paul Choy has traveled to around 50 countries in 6 continents. In the end, he decided to connect to his roots and settled on paradise on Earth, Mauritius Island.
Rencontre…
“Being born in the United Kingdom from an English mother and a Mauritian father, I always had the urge to connect to my native country. I decided to come to Mauritius with my family for a period of six months. Upon coming here, I started pondering on ways which would make me feel more connected and ‘feel more Mauritian’. I then decided that the best way to get started is to learn the language. I started going to random places to meet people and get to know the locals better. Once I spotted a group of people, my idea of engaging into a conversation was through my camera. I would capture moments of people on the beach or of a group of youngsters playing domino under the veranda. The process of taking the pictures would always be a great conversation starter.”
While this started as a way to ‘be Mauritian’, Paul Choy’s photographs soon began to garner more and more attention. “People would appreciate the pictures I clicked and soon enough I was being called a photographer!”. He started getting offers to shoot internationally and hence the journey of being a photographer began.
Moving from one country to another at a high pace pleased him, however the feeling of being in Mauritius was different. The travels turned to a goad to renew his initial project, that of discovering Mauritius. “For me Mauritius was nothing like the island travel agencies described on the brochures. Mauritius was not only the sandy beaches and turquoise water, rather it was about the people, the rain, the rocky beaches in the south and it was the ability change views from beach to forest in a single trip.
During the lockdown Paul, being an avid traveler, found it difficult to stay confined. “My thirst for exploring the island was more and more and I wanted to absolutely go out. However, I kept in mind my duty towards the population and towards those risking their lives to protect ours. Once the lockdown had been lifted, I restarted doing what I do best, telling stories through my photography”.
“This concept of ‘Walk Mauritius’ hence came up with my idea to continue discovering the island. I felt that there was something magical about exploring things at a slower pace. My procedure was that I start walking from a random point and I capture everything that attracts my eyes. I will encourage everyone to ‘go on a walk’ and capture things that they find interesting on their phone or digital camera.” ‘Walk Mauritius had started along the coast of Grand Bay. It followed the path towards the west coast of the island and is currently progressing towards the south.
Mauritius has seen some emerging talents in the photography world, Paul advices anyone who wishes to go on the same path to, “shoot what you like and shoot a lot”. The latter has also come up with the project #yourmauritius, where aspiring photographers can share their work and the best pick will be posted on Paul Choy’s social media handle.
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