EDITORIAL WORK
I specialise in portrait, documentary style and journalistic commissions . I have worked on stories related to the Environment, LGBTQ issues, Women’s rights, Profiles of Individuals/Sports teams etc. for various national and international magazines and newspapers. I am also available to shoot travel stories across India. The following are excerpts from a selection of my editorial work.
Time Magazine, October, 2022
Across India, medical practitioners, health care professionals, spiritual godmen and gurus offer forms of “conversion therapy,” an umbrella term used for harmful and scientifically discredited treatments for changing an individual’s sexual orientation, gender identity, or gender expression.
In June 2020, Meenakshi Sajeesh was forced to visit a dubious clinic that claimed to cure homosexuality after she told her parents she was a lesbian. As Sajeesh stepped into the doctor’s office, she texted friends to let them know her whereabouts and pressed the “record” button on her phone—knowing she might one day need proof of what was about to transpire.The experience left her feeling traumatized.
Sajeesh’s experience, along with the recording she captured, is now part of the evidence for a writ of petition filed in October 2020 at the High Court of Kerala. If successful, the petition would require the high court to pass orders to criminalize those who advocate for conversion therapy.
In the current landscape in India, Sajeesh and her partner Sandhya Rajakumar, who continue to fight for their right to be together, feel that LGBTQ rights have only gained “small, marginal wins.” They say it will take a long time before they can live more freely. For now, they are trying not to plan too far ahead.
So Good Magazine ↙️
The Naganadhi river, that once flowed through Vellore and Thiruvannamalai district, ran dry around 15 years ago because of rampant afforestation along its banks. Thanks to a predominantly women-led initiative, that spanned across 60 villages and involved over 18,000 women, the river has been revived and once again flows.
Under the guidance of geologists using remote-sensing data, the Naganadhi river rejuvenation project (NRRP) made plans to build over 600 recharge wells and boulder checks. The women of Salamanthanam village, aided by self-help groups, seized the opportunity and decided to do the work themselves. They labored on all stages of the project including digging the recharge pits, placing heavy stones and cement rings and closing the wells. The initiative gave a measure of independence to the army of women involved in the project by augmenting their income.
I travelled to Salamanantham village in February, 2020 and photographed Vidya Bhaskar who emerged as a veritable community leader after her involvement with the rejuvenation efforts. She told us that the project gave her a sense of purpose after the untimely death of her only daughter.
Caravan magazine ⬇️
Portrait work in the May, 2019 issue of The Caravan magazine. I photographed orators Sunny Kapikad and Sunil Elayidom - they are speaking out against religious revivalism in Kerala. Champions of the marginalised and advocates of renaissance values , Their speeches in the aftermath of the Sabarimala issue have reached lakhs of people in India and abroad via YouTube.
Portrait/Documentary work for GQ India ⬇️
1) Portrait of Carl Pei, Co-founder of OnePlus for the ‘Power Lunch’ section.
2-5) The August, 2018 edition of GQ India and their feature story on gender fluidity profiled Durga Gawde and Xen Aerat in the larger context of Bangalore’s diverse queer community. Portraits of Druga x Xen and Joshua Muyiwa.
6-9) I photographed the India U-17 football team in the run-up to the U-17 Football World Cup, 2017 being held in India.
Silkwinds magazine ⬇️
1) A chronicle of the burgeoning ‘third-wave’ coffee house in Bangalore, India and a look at the traditional coffee culture in the south Indian metropolis.
2) A ride on the famous Nilgiri mountain railway and documenting the bespoke tea tasting experiences offered by private plantations in the blue mountains.
Time Magazine, 2019 ⬇️
Bindu A and K Kanakadurga became the first women to officially enter the Sabarimala shrine after the Supreme Court Verdict in September, overturning the long-standing ban on women of “mensturating age” entering the temple. After their incredibly courageous act, they were forced to go into hiding to escape the ire of right- wing extremist groups . I made this portrait of the incredible duo for Time magazine. An excerpt from the article
”Bindu, a 40-year-old law professor, left, and 39-year-old government supplies officer Kanakadurga met just weeks ago. Now they finish each other’s sentences. The pair, who entered the Lord Ayyappa temple in Sabarimala, southern Kerala, on Jan. 2, became the first women to officially do so since the Supreme Court overturned a longstanding ban in September that prevented women of “menstruating age”—defined as between the ages of 10 and 50—from entering the temple complex. Afterward, the head priest shut the doors for an hour-long “purification ceremony.” Across Kerala, in southern India, mobs claiming to be offended devotees are going on a rampage, damaging buses, burning effigies and throwing stones and crude bombs in the streets. One man has died, and hundreds have been injured. Police have arrested more than 5,700 people. Many Hindus believe that the energy, or chaitanya, of a woman’s body is polluted during menstruation. Most temples allow women to enter as long as they are not on their period, but the Sabarimala temple is one of the few banning women of childbearing age altogether. “People will always spit at those trying to push for social change,” Kanakadurga says. “We’ll be asked what’s the hurry to become equal, why us two, why today, why not tomorrow, or why this way. It’s part of any transition. I just appeal to my brothers on the streets to find some tolerance within them, and stop the violence in our name.” "
Catalyst Magazine ⬇️
Portraits of Sunita Venugopal, Director corporate communications of Walmart Labs India for Catalyst magazine
FORBES INDIA ⬇️
Portrait of Werner Vogels, CTO of Amazon for Forbes India.
