Hi, my name is Varun Gupta and I am a Chennai based photographer, co-founder and Director of Chennai Photo Biennale and a digital marketing strategist. Those of you that know me, know that i am deeply passionate about photography and public art.

I started my career as a photographer in 2007 and I was lucky in those early days to be given a break by Apparao galleries. I will never forget that feeling of seeing my prints fill up the walls of the gallery and visitors appreciating my photographs. As I continued to exhibit around the country and spent more time sitting around in galleries, I began observing the types of people who came through. One thing became clear, the gallery attracted a very select audience of art lovers and the man on the street would very rarely have the chance to engage with photographic art.

In 2012, Art Chennai gave me the opportunity to orchestrate one of the first ever large format photography exhibitions in a train station in India in partnership with the Goethe-Institut. We exhibited over 13,000 sq ft of photographic prints across the gigantic Thiruvanmiyur MRTS station, with 160 participating photographers from Chennai. This was a turning point for me, to watch commuters stop in their tracks and enjoy the maze of photographs on the platform, sparked a shift in my mind. I knew then, that in order for the appreciation of photography to grow in India, one has to take the art form to public spaces and start from the grassroots.

What started as the first discussion with Helmut Schippert (GI Chennai Director) in 2015, became the moment of genesis for Chennai Photo Biennale. We started CPB with the purpose of nurturing the photography community in India by creating a space for us photographers to meet, discuss and celebrate our medium. The rest, as they say, is history, with the support of the Goethe-Institut, many close friends and fellow photographers in Chennai, and the artistic community at large, we held a truly memorable first edition.

Chennai is my adopted home for the last 12 years, and I have grown to love its rhythm, colour and warm people. As a citizen, I think it is up to each of us to do our part in shaping the future of our cities and country. Today, I am raising INR 50,000 to help the initiative get to their overall goal of raising INR 3Crores and creating a world-class spectacle. Chennai is already known for being a hub for traditional dance and music, its time to add a contemporary flavour to the mix. The Chennai Photo Biennale will impact the citizens of Chennai and shift their attitudes towards art and culture and encourage more people to embrace photography.

Over a period of time, it will definitely grow into a movement that will impact those in the south, then in India. Please do fund this campaign and lets together put India and Chennai on the world photography map.