Against the backdrop of World Photography Day on August 19, five photographers look back at their favourite frames of Chennai, and the memories that drew them to capture them
Like any other metropolitan city, Chennai is always on the move, chasing dreams and livelihoods. But in every nook and corner of the city — between the bricks of its colonial buildings and the folds of its shorelines — lie thousands of stories, told and untold. The city reveals this side to those who pause and observe it.
Framing the past
“There is nothing like Chennai in the early morning light. The best time to photograph architectural buildings is between 5.30am and 7am, especially when the sky is cloudy,” says Kiran Sa.
In his photograph, the Senate House of the University of Madras stands with its ornate arches and domes in the soft morning light, bringing alive the colonial history the city carries.
As a child, such fragments of history fascinated him, he says. During the early days of his career, Kiran says that these structures turned into informal classrooms as he practised capturing the photographs of these buildings to understand light, exposure and framing.
“Chennai is rich in such beautiful architectural buildings, designed in a way that allows natural light to fall beautifully on them,” he says, revealing that photographing the historical Chepauk Palace remains a dream.
Focussing on the overlooked
A woman catching crawn from Kosasthalaiyar River
| Photo Credit:
Noor Nisha
Beyond the historical past of the city, photographer Noor Nisha’s lens follows the lesser documented corners in the northern region of Chennai. Her favourite photograph, taken from Kosasthalaiyar River near the Ennore Creek estuary, captures a woman from the Irular tribal community catching prawns for a livelihood.
“The photo also portrays the struggles of women. Catching prawns is their only means of livelihood. Although the river is polluted, they have no option but to depend on it,” she says.
As a woman from North Chennai, she feels deeply connected with the region and subject of the photograph. For her, photography is also a way of challenging the stereotypes attached to the region. “North Chennai is often portrayed in a negative light. I want to show the other side of it, beyond the stereotypes,” she says.
Capturing the spirit
Fishermen rescuing the crew of MT Pratibha
| Photo Credit:
Kabilan AP
As much as Chennai is shaped by its struggles, it is also a city defined by the unity and resilience of its people. One such moment was captured by photographer Kabilan AP in 2012 at Elliot’s Beach when Cyclone Nilam drove the oil tanker MT Pratibha aground.
“We all stood helpless, but suddenly, a cheer erupted. A fisherman’s boat was speeding into the waters. When they finally managed to rescue the drowning crew, the whole crowd went wild. The fishing boat went back twice, battling strong waves and winds. However, they managed to rescue most of the crew,” he says, recalling the story behind his photograph.
Expressing his strong dream of documenting the lives of people in the city, he says, “The heart of Chennai is the people in it.”
Portrait of strength
Portrait of a woman flower vendor
| Photo Credit:
Neha Samuel
The strength and courage of the city is not only visible in moments of crisis but also in the frames of everyday life. Neha Samuel’s portrait of a flower vendor on a street in Perambur captures one such moment.
The photograph captures a woman carrying a stool on her head as she makes her way to sell flowers. “The morning light made her shadow appear bigger. She was just an ordinary woman carrying a stool on her head, but when I looked at her shadow, it felt like she was carrying something much bigger — her struggles and her dreams,” she says.
As a photographer, Neha says she is more drawn to documenting the life of the people.
For Neha, the photograph is also a reflection of her own journey. “She could have carried the stool in her hands, but she chose to carry it on her head. For her, it is the stool; for me, it is my camera bag. As a photographer, I also carry my own dreams and struggles,” she says.
Behind the frame
Poster of the film Boys
| Photo Credit:
G Venket Ram
For generations, Chennai has also been remembered through its cinema.
“Earlier, film publicity in Madras relied on painters who would create huge hand-painted hoardings, especially along Mount Road. But with the arrival of the digital age in the late 1990s and early 2000s, digital prints and flex hoardings changed the way films were advertised,” says G Venket Ram, who has been working behind the camera for 30 years, recalling one of the transformations in the city’s advertising landscape.
Recalling the poster shoot for the 2003 Tamil film Boys, he says the visually vibrant images created considerable attention at the time. “The pictures were colourful and visually striking, and they created a lot of attention. It was a turning point in film publicity during that period,” he says.
With social media yet to enter the publicity landscape, film promotions at the time relied heavily on billboards, posters and print advertisements. “We would shoot different pictures — a romantic shot, an action shot or just an expression — and these were used for flex hoardings, CD covers, posters and newspaper advertisements.”
He also remembers the artists who painted the larger-than-life hoardings. “There were many talented painters doing this work, but change is inevitable. Unfortunately, we lost out on many of those artists.”
Published – August 19, 2026 01:27 pm IST
