We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Malek Bigum a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Malek, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. What’s been the most meaningful project you’ve worked on?

The latest and probably also most meaningful project I have worked on, is the story about Peter Cicak, 19 and Kristian Mirga, 21 who live in Lunik lX. Lunik lX is a ghetto located in the outskirts of Košice, Slovakia and is known for being one of the worst in europe. It is inhabited by around 5.500-7.000 people, and the living conditions are nightmarish. The unemployment rate is around 100 procent and people often live cramped up in small apartments with no electricity or running water.
I went there because I was curious about how people my own age live in a particularly vulnerable area and if they have the same dreams and thoughts that I go with myself. Over my subsequent visits to Lunik lX, I found that we went through many of the same things, just on different terms. Of course their thinking is radically different, in that it is based on whether there is food on the table or how they will get through the winter. However, the beautiful thing is that the dreams still live on, hidden behind all the everyday thoughts. “I want to live a normal life and find a good job, not a life here with drugs. That’s my goal”, Kristian Mirga, 21.
I wanted to focus on the youth living there, because they are the future. Just like everywhere else in the world, young people face a lot of pressure and a lot of choices about what their future should look like and how their place in the world should be shaped. It is also important to me that the story does not become another “ghetto story” about a lost youth, where there is no light at the end of the tunnel. Although they all live a very different life to what I do here in Denmark, they are also young, full of life and dreams.
This story means a lot to me for various reasons, but what makes it special is that I can reflect myself in them. They have a friendship just like the one I share with some of my friends, but the only difference is that they don’t have the same opportunities that we have, solely because they were born where they are. Most people are introduced to alcohol and drugs at a very young age and this also means that it becomes normal to live that way. Many are at an early age exposed to failure both from family, but also from society and it can therefore be difficult for them to see the other side of Lunik lX.
Both Kristian and Peter want to learn English and move abroad, but it is difficult because they have no real education and Roma people are looked down on in Slovakia so it is very hard to find work.
It’s really hard to form a bond with someone who lives like that just to go home to my own comforting reality and leave them behind where the only thing I can do is to tell their story.

Malek, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

My name is Malek Bigum, 22 and I am a documentary photographer based in Copenhagen, Denmark. I started taking photos of my friends almost 10 years ago and that lit a spark in me that slowly developed from a hobby to something I want to dedicate my life to. Taking photos means a lot to me because I can have a tendency to be shy, but that shyness goes away as soon as I start taking pictures. I have met a lot of amazing people that I wouldn’t have met if I didn’t have a camera and I’m really grateful for that. In addition to that, there are also a lot of stories that are important to tell and document and I would like to be a part of that.

What do you think is the goal or mission that drives your creative journey?

I want to tell people’s stories, normal people as well as people like Kristian and Peter. Everyone has a story and it’s always interesting to delve into what has shaped a person’s life. My dream is to establish my name so that I have the opportunity to reach a lot of people with the stories that I find interesting and that are important to me. I would love to make a difference with the photos and stories I do. I have absolutely no intentions of becoming famous or making a lot of money, but I would be happy if my work could become recognized and if I could inspire people just like I have been by other artists.

For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?

All the stories and people you get to know through being creative and exploring life is fantastic. I would never trade my camera for anything.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/malekbigum

Image Credits
Malek Bigum