PHOTOGRAPHY

Ever since my childhood, I have had a love for taking pictures. It all started with a young kid (yeah, it’s me :)) with a low-resolution point-and-shoot camera, dreaming of shooting whatever he found interesting. Over time, I tried out numerous techniques and compositions, and my passion for photography grew stronger. During my bachelor univerity years, a friend of mine and I documented historical temples and artefacts around my hometown. In May 2019, I purchased a Canon 77D, which I have been using ever since. Gradually, I strengthen my knowledge of composition and learnt different camera techniques. I, personally feel photography helps me develop a keen eye to notice beauty in the world around me and sculpt every single component to portray the story.

Here is a short story describing my thought process and experience while capturing the glorious Milky Way.

Capturing the Milky Way had always been a dream of mine, but my first attempt in April 2020 was a comedy of errors. At 1:30 AM, I found myself debating with my mom for half an hour about where the galaxy actually was. When I finally pinpointed it between constellations, light pollution washed out the shot. Determined to learn, I started shooting time-lapses to better understand the night sky’s movement. A month later, I tried a darker location, but clouds blocked the view. I didn't give up, though; I used the downtime to master techniques for shooting in light-polluted areas. That preparation finally paid off on a ride with my dad. We hit a pitch-dark patch of road, so I asked him to stop the bike, set up my tripod, and clicked the shutter. Boom! The first clear image appeared on my screen, leaving me absolutely stunned. It was a challenging journey of trial and error, which makes sharing these images even more rewarding

Milky way
Senjerimalai
Shooting the milky way in the night sky has always been a dream for me. The first time (01:30, April 18 2020), when I planned to shoot, I couldn't even see where it was.I set up my tripod, clicked the shutter button and Boom! The first picture stunned me. After that, I played with different positions and came up with those images. Overall, capturing the Milky Way was a challenging yet rewarding experience.
A fine evening
Punjai Puliampatti
The backlighten grassland with a classic sunset scene is my favourite thing in this picture. And, let me know what you loved in this picture.
The world under countless stars
Senjerimalai
These are the pictures that I shot at the end during that night. When I was composing these images, I found that the steps was a bit dark and lacking some interest. I had a thought, to bring some interest in that area. So, I turned on a flashlight and painted the foreground. If you are wondering about the red coloured foreground, it's actually quite simple. I covered it with my fingers (DIY, Huh?). Thus,it brings up the blue-red combo which is actually cool.
Cricketer's Eutopia
Aliyar Dam
This was shot at zero point view in Aliyar dam during the golden hour. It was a beautiful sunny day in the late summer in Aliyar (around 20 km from Pollachi). While amazed by the beautiful scenery, people playing cricket caught my attention. After getting lost there, I took a deep breath, before composing the image. What a magical experience it would be to play cricket with your pals while surrounded by stunning mountains. I really adore the part the most.
A Highkey Shot
Punjai Puliampatti
This was shot near Punjai Puliampatti. It wasn't the scenario, I usually go out to shoot. Though it was the golden hour, the sky was overcast and barely any light was hitting the scene. Realising the contrast in the scene, I switched my camera setting to monochrome and started looking for subjects. After some drive, I came across an old man looking after a herd of goats and i found him interesting to shoot. Idea from nowhere, I had a thought to go for some highkey shots. So,I quickly turned up the exposure to an extent, and boom! That's how I got this shot.
Parallel Dimensions
Puliampatti
Moody Silhouette
Ooty
This was shot near St.Mary's Church in Kothagiri. Yeah, It was foggy that time. I was trying to capture the vibe and suddenly I saw the man with an umbrella that created a bit of contrast with the background. So, I intentionally underexposed slightly to create that moody silhouette.
Rays of Heaven
Ooty
This picture was shot in Kottakombai near Kothagiri. The conical hill, which is on the left, is OothiMalai (Temple for a Hindu god ) and the stream in the front is from Bhavanisagar Dam.
Idyllic farm
Bhavanisagar
A pleasant evening in Bhavanisagar
A Stunning view of Aliyar Dam
Aliyar Dam
A Majestic King of Mysore
Mysore
This picture is shot duing Dussherra in Mysore.
Paddy field
Nambiyur
This is shot in a paddy field near Nambiyur during photoshoot with Kalleshwaran.
A Mesmerising View
Kodiveri Dam
A stunning sunset in Kodiveri dam.
Ruins of Hampi
Hampi
Party vibes | Abstract
Coorg
This was shot in a concert hall at Coorg. Of course, it was before the pandemic. Loud music, strobe lights, smoke bombs, everybody was vibing, head banging, that was totally crazy. So, I wanted to capture the complete mood of the scene in a photo. After experimenting multiple ideas, I realized that slowing down the shutter was really helping me to capture the motion, I wanted. Figuring out the idea, I waited for something extraordinary to happen. Music was slowly building up and I thought to myself, that was going to be the moment. Finally, the beat was dropped, smoke bombs were burst, lights were strobing at the same time. Fortunately, I was able to capture at 1" shutter speed and kept it abstract. I, personally, like the motion blurred hands in the air (in the bottom left), showing the vibe of the people.
Fireworks
Punjai Puliampatti
A stacked photo of fireworks
Stunning view of Bhavanisagar
Bhavanisagar
Negative Space
Punjai Puliampatti
It was an overcast evening near Punjai Puliampatti and barely any light was hitting the scene. As overcast weather creates deeper shadows and brighter highlights which brings in greater contrast, I switched to monochrome mode. It was interesting that the old man got off his bicycle and started pushing up the slope. I used the negative space and the divider lanes on the curve road to lead the eyes to the subject. If you notice keenly, you will understand that I have broken the rule of thirds which makes it kind of odd and unique. I, personally, love the notion of how it guides the viewer to the subject, despite the old man being placed at the edge of the frame.
Light and Shadows
Senjerimalai
This was shot at Senjerimalai in the golden hour. Every time I go pass by this place, I always wanted to play with the morning light piercing through those trees. When I went out to shoot, I was amazed to see those beautiful shadows of the trees and the glowing grass made by the golden light.
Canopy
Burliyar
The process
Gobichettipalaym
A Closeup of Keyboard
Punjai Puliampatti
Description
The Swift
Senjerimalai
Cyberpunk look
Senjerimalai
Street Portraits
Kalasipalayam
This was shot in the streets of Kalasipalayam, Bangalore. The photography walk with Subham Farate started from Majestic Metro Station and down the avenues towards VisveswaraPuram (the paradise for street food lovers in Bangalore). The two young men were taking in the sight on a nice late evening. When the lads saw me taking pictures, they became excited. I love how it's composed to have tyres on both sides leading to the subjects on either side of the grids.
Natural frame
Senjerimalai
This was shot at Senjerimalai after the first lockdown in India. After weeks and weeks of being inside the four walls, going out in the early morning to enjoy the nature, felt great as anything. As you might know from the past, I am being a fan of golden lights, I used the tree branches to frame the mount in the back. I personally love the beautifully backlighten tree branch, which also gives a sense of depth to the image.
Storms incoming
Punjai Puliampatti
Golden Hour
Senjerimalai
A Portait of an Oldman
Nambiyur
This was shot in Nambiyur weekly market. When I went out for shooting with my uncle, this old man got my interest. The posture, shirtless with the turban, the blade in his hand, the bucket to his left and the environment match the story perfectly.
Coimbatore
BEATBOXING

I guess you could say I speak music. I picked up beatboxing in high school, mostly because I thought it was great that you could mimic a drum kit with just your voice. I kept practicing through bachelor univerity days, learning new techniques and patterns along the way. I'm still learning, but it’s become my favorite creative outlet to let out some emotion and energy.

Here are a few clips of a Beatbox competition (2021) and a short interview.

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CALISTHENICS

Through my journey, I strongly believe that working out helps me develop the mental fortitude more than it does to my physical strength. It enormously callused my mind to be self-disciplined and push my boundaries every day despite the hardships. I follow a workout routine of Push, Pull, Leg, Mobility and Endurance cyclically for 6 days, followed by a rest day on a week.

Here is my workout tracker graph, depicting the percentage of days I adhered to my above routine for the past 4 year

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click on the image

Note: April 2021 is not a calculation error.

Strava Activities

Cooking

I’ve always wanted to cook and explore different cuisines around the world. So in September 2025, I decided to start a fun culinary challenge: cooking dishes from different countries every week. I divided the world into 12 regions and picked 7 countries from each one. Every night, I cooked one dish that I felt truly represented that country’s cuisine or somthing that I wanted to try out. Throughout this journey, I discovered so many new ingredients and cooking techniques. It was fascinating to see how cuisines from different parts of the world can feel so similar yet so unique at the same time. Finding specific ingredients was sometimes tricky, but I actually enjoyed the process of searching local stores and occasionally traveling out of town just to get that one special item. I originally planned to document everything in detail, like cooking time, taste, appearance, and difficulty level, but keeping up with that alongside daily cooking turned out to be tough. That said, I did manage to take photos of every dish. Over 13 weeks (12 regions plus one buffer week to catch up on missed dishes), I ended up cooking 84 dishes from 84 different countries.

I truly enjoyed the entire experience. Cooking something new every night was exciting, and sometimes my friends even helped with prep work. I also got dish recommendations from friends from different countries, which made the journey even more special. As always, I am very pleased to share the food with them and hear their feedback. Overall, this was an amazing learning experience of understanding and appreciating different cultures through their food. I’ve added several of these dishes to my regular cooking rotation, and I’m genuinely proud of myself for completing this challenge. If I ever do this again, I’d love to focus more on documenting the process and learning even more about each country and its culture.

Documention coming soon!