“My father was a photographer in the pre-independence era. He used to click pictures, develop them, create a short write-up around it, and send it to journalists. He was an active member of the Quit India Movement and even went to prison for that. It was from him that I learned to love photography.

Photography has always been a passion, and I initially had a Kodak Pop film camera, which I used to click the pictures. But that wasn’t my career option. I was one of the first few computer programmers in the country. I developed a program for a nationalized bank and trained all their personnel over 35 years ago. However, my interest was still in photography, so I went on to join a course in editing and designing. I was learning Multimedia Designing from Aptech, who allowed me to start teaching people soon after my course.

I got to work in Srilanka for six years, set up operations, and expand the scope of the institution there. I then had a stint in Dubai. While I was there, I clicked a picture of the Prince of Dubai on my camera, which is one of the images I cherish till date. After two years in Dubai, I moved back to India to take care of my aged mother. I started clicking pictures on my mobile phone, first, a 2MP camera, next to a 12 MP, and then a 41 MP camera. Living in Triplicane, most of my photos were of Perumal, and some of the pictures I’ve clicked are what the MP temples and shops use on calendars. I do not charge them when they use my photographs as I take pride in the fact that almost every house in Triplicane has photos of Perumal that I’d clicked.
It was only three years ago that I got a professional camera. My wife is an author, and I worked with her on a lot of her projects. We also contributed together for the Madras 380 anthology, where I captured pictures that tell the tale of the city. A few other photographers, including a couple of my friends, were part of this project. I think my journey in photography has just begun because there’s a long way to go!”

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