ABOUT

Hariharan Gopal, photographer, Chennai.

THE WORK

My name is Hariharan Gopal. I am a photographer based in Chennai, India.

Since 2015 I have photographed across India: Theyyam and Mudiyettu in Kerala, the Dasara festival at Kulasekarapattinam, salt-pan work at Thoothukudi, Hampi and the Himalaya. I am now editing this archive into long-term projects.

HOW I WORK

HOW I WORK

I return to the same places and people over several years rather than passing through once. I am interested in what happens around a ritual as much as the ritual itself: the preparation, the waiting, and the people who make it happen.

Real &
Unstaged

The Inferno Walker - A devotee traverses the boundary between man and myth, illuminated by the sparks of the ritual fire.

I don’t use models and I don’t direct the scene. I spend time with the people I photograph and wait. Every photograph here is of a real event.

I don’t use models and I don’t direct the scene. I spend time with the people I photograph and wait. Every photograph here is of a real event.

CONTACT

The people behind the pictures.

Many of these photographs are of people at work: salt-pan workers at Thoothukudi, washers at Mumbai’s Dhobi Ghat, and the performers and painters who prepare for each ritual.

For commissions, editorial use or prints:

hariharan321@gmail.com

Services

CHAT

Prints

Prints

Prints

Commissions

Commissions

Commissions

Editorial Licensing

Editorial Licensing

Editorial Licensing

Cultural documentation

Cultural documentation

Cultural documentation