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I have been a studious child and was especially attracted to history. I was getting prepared to serve my nation by joining the civil services but fate had something else in mind. Even though I was a studious kid, I was very passionate about photography and used to click photographs on almost every family event. When I was in my second year of college I bought my own camera

Photography as a concept came to me from my family, we have always had several picture albums and cameras from back in the day lingering around in the house. My grandfather and my uncle are very fond of photography and they've always loved capturing the moments that our family was sharing. I'm sure I picked up my fondness towards my profession through them and I still remember when I was very young, I used to play around with those cameras and I loved it.

Photography came into my life when I had no idea that I had the skills to click pictures. We had planned a mass bunk during my college and it changed my life. That day, I held a camera for the first time and I loved it so much that I didn’t give it to anyone else. Since then, I have never stopped clicking pictures.

I make memories for these children so that they can see them when they grow up and know how they were loved and how the memories I am creating for them can be relived again. I keep things natural and avoid using any props or setups. Any new photographer can take up this genre, but they must remember to work hard and their main goal in the early stages should be to take it slow and find a signature style.

Discussions about architecture might be the first thing I heard after my birth. To be more specific, every single member of my family is an architect and among them, my grand-uncle was the beam of light I saw. I don’t know what he saw in my eyes that day, but he gave me his old camera with 1 roll of film and asked me to click a picture with the perfect exposure. I failed with my first roll of film, but I continued using more rolls which were quite expensive. After a month and 40 rolls of film, I managed to get the perfect exposure.

Sometimes I wish I had done a small course in photography so that I would have a certification and a stable job that could pay well. I wouldn't have to depend on tourists and other factors that influence our wages. The only thing I feel like I missed out on, was my childhood and the innocent years of early youth when most kids have the privilege of just roaming around and not worrying about feeding their family.

I was just a regular engineering student but everything changed when I got into a road accident in 2008 and was under medical supervision for about 2 years. I did not confine myself in my house and I always had a tick to do something or the other. I consider this as my rebirth and photography add meaning to this rebirth. 

Photography has taught me a lot about myself and what I really want to do in my life. At the moment, if I decide not to pursue this as a full-time career, I know in my heart I will circle back to it later because it is meant for me. I believe in myself and I know I belong to photography.

In today’s world, we see photographers are over inspired and fascinated by looking at work on social media and try to replicate that. But together we need to understand that we are in the business of emotions and creating memories rather than creating trends.

I think there is one moment in a photographer’s life which he or she would cherish forever. I got that one moment while I was just strolling around the city to take photos. I chanced upon a slum where a wedding was going on. The people at the function spotted me and requested me to take a few pictures of them. After clicking their pictures, I personally gave them the photos in a pen drive. The happiness I saw on their faces is unparalleled because those memories might have gone undocumented if I had not coincidentally appeared. I might have done it free of cost but the love I got from them is much more than any remuneration.

I used to click pictures randomly which led to my rising interest in photography. I started clicking pictures more seriously and saved them in a specific folder to show my dad about my interest and maybe that could be enough for him to be convinced to buy me a camera. I started showing him pictures and a few months later when I finally asked him to buy me a camera, he was convinced!

I remember being a regular engineering student who was just fond of photography and was very fascinated by it. I loved capturing moments and that's what got me to where I am today. That young boy did not know that he was going to end up ditching his regular job and take a swing towards his passion and make a living out of it. 

I am a dentist and a clinical research scientist by profession, and I love working in this field. For me, photography feeds positivity to my soul. Even though I never went to an institute to learn photography, I have disciplined myself into giving some time everyday into learning something about  photography either via videos or analyzing other photographers work, editing my own stuff and on weekends, I try to devote as much time to my photography as I can.

I feel that once a person is into photography that person is hooked on to it for good. The work entices you and you cannot find peace in any other job afterwards. Take it from an old-timer, if you give all your heart to photography, it would never cripple you financially. There is always work in photography.

It was after the trip to Dharavi, Mumbai, that my idea about life changed completely. I realized that there was so much to explore and so many new people to meet. I decided to click pictures of these people on the streets and travel to the rarest of places to bring these people into the limelight. I travelled and shot videos and films of various people that deepened my love for photography even further.

I have been an active kid in school and always wanted to do something different in life. I used to play basketball at school and even won a gold medal at the National level. Basketball can be called as my first love but as I finished my schooling, I realized that it will not do much as a full-time career and decided to choose an academic field while exploring different things. Photography was not even in my vision then. I did have a few friends who were in this field and I always appreciate what they did because it was something different from the usual. 

Pursuing photography was a challenge back in 2012. I loved traveling and I clicked pictures with my small digital camera everywhere I went. But as I belonged to a middle-class family, going on frequent holiday trips was a luxury. So, to quench my thirst to travel, I clicked pictures I used to save up and go on small trips. I found Buddhist monasteries exceptional and it made me explore the mountains a lot.

As fate would have it, I met with an accident in the first year that dislocated my shoulder and I had to drop out to heal. It was during this gap year that I stumbled upon photography and discovered my love for it. I convinced my dad to buy me a starter’s camera kit and roughly prepared a portfolio through which I could apply for the Fashion Communication program at NIFT. 

Photography can take you places that you never thought of and help you meet people you would have never imagined, meeting. Two of my biggest shoots in life, till date, are with Steve Waugh and M.C. Mary Kom. The experience was so beautiful and these shoots will always be one of the biggest achievements of my life.

I have had an interest in photography for a long time and decided to pursue my graduation in multimedia. I got admission into a prestigious college in the South but the surrounding change hit me a little hard. I couldn’t make a lot of friends. Sometimes it felt like I didn’t belong. I always wanted to create something rather than following the norms. I started spending more time with my camera and slowly drowned towards journalism, it felt like the combination was perfect.

As a photographer, one thing I look forward to is the exhibition I do every 4 years. I travel around the country and gather my most iconic pictures from all the trips. My last exhibition was a collection of the pictures I took from 25 states in 3 years and every picture was telling a story. After the response I got in my last exhibitions, I am now building the collection for my next exhibition.