“As a child, I was always intrigued by the images and slow-motion videos that were telecast on Discovery channel. While my friends were hooked to cartoons, I was glued to the beauty that nature had to offer, in the form of visuals. I identified early in life that photography is where my heart is and asked my parents to buy me a camera. I wanted to experiment with different styles of photography. While my basic camera did not have the fancy features that the Discovery channel camera did, I was not one to give up easily. I kept clicking pictures and getting better with every passing day. All this was while I was still in school. After my 10th grade, I wanted to pursue a diploma in polytechnics as I felt photography is where I belonged. My parents, however, talked me into finishing my 12th standard in school instead. After that, I pursued my B.Sc. in Visual Communications, learned the nuances of photography and was guided by my mentors in identifying my true strength. It was one of my seniors, Bharani anna who helped me understand that I belong in cinematography and that’s where I should focus my efforts. I did and the results paid off too! After college, I started working for short films and making documentaries but that wasn’t a well-paying option, so started doing a wedding shoots too. It filled me with joy when clients walked up to me at public places and told me that I shot their wedding and they loved the output. To me, they were one of my many clients, but to them I was someone who eternalized their big day. That’s when it dawned upon me that this is a job that needs to be taken more seriously than I was at that moment. So, I put my heart and soul into it more than ever. I also worked with my friends on a documentary on the lives of people in North of Madras. I went around capturing people being their natural self and also had quick chats with a couple of them.

My friend arranged for a screening of the documentary during a local festival and everyone loved it. For me, it was all about talking to people and capturing their life, I was having fun and my reward was that they felt their life couldn’t have been showcased any better. Meeting and talking to new people everyday is what I would call the best part of my job. Real people, real emotions and a slice of their lives make me love my job.”

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