“Mumbai Stories”: Photographer Tarun Khiwal Perfectly Captures Traditional Indian Bridal Fashion With Modern Aesthetic

Tarun Khiwal is among India’s leading fashion photographers and a true maverick. Recognized and featured internationally, his experimental style and finesse transformed fashion photography in India, and gave it a global edge while also ushering in a new era of exploration. His journey with the art form began 25 years ago, and without any formal training, his undying passion and commitment have led him to become one of the world’s leading photographers.

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The strongest, most defining aspect of Tarun’s aesthetic is that he never conformed to the conventional ‘rules’, but made his own. His visual style is unmatched because it stems from his Indian roots, and yet transcends them to speak a contemporary language. Instead of following western trends and masters, he crafted his own rare style by drawing inspiration from his personal treasure of memories and experiences in his own country India; small anecdotes of his childhood years, or places he’d visited, or celebrations he’d seen, the culture and traditions that influenced him while growing up.

Each image by Tarun Khiwal carries this signature backdrop, this unmistakable sense of heritage and pride in one’s own culture. He combined this sensibility with the technical and artistic sophistication of modern photography to deliver images that are distinctly his own and so unique that they have won him appreciation
and accolades the world over.

He is the first and only Indian to be honored with the Hasselblad Masters Award, as well as the only Indian whose work was chosen for the leading Swiss professional photography light manufacturer Broncolor’s Annual Calendar in 2012. In an unprecedented shift from their standard imagery, Broncolor deviated in their approach to feature abstract, illusory photographs by Tarun Khiwal. He has also been featured in Tom Ang’s book ‘The Complete Photographer’ as one of the world’s Top 20 Professional Photographers.