Behind the lens

She’s an ambitious  woman — a travel addict, TEDx speaker, award-winning photographer and an entrepreneur. Richa Maheshwari wears many hats with equal ease. She struggled when she began her artistic journey seven years ago while still in college.

“Everyone thought I would go to some management college, but then, I had an inclination towards arts and design. I wanted to make a career in design, so I decided to drop a year and started preparing for NIFT and finally got through it. In my third year, my professor encouraged me to take up photography after seeing some of my submissions. After that, I started gaining knowledge about my equipment online and reading a lot about fashion photography. By the end of my fourth year, I had my studio in place and that’s how I started,” Richa recalls.

A self-made woman, she managed to carve a niche for herself without having a godfather in the industry or taking assistance from any photographer. Today, Richa Maheshwari Films & Photography is a trusted, award-winning brand in the world of fashion, textile, beauty and advertising with a plethora of national and international clients. From identity makeovers, branding to visual imagery, cataloguing and more, the company strives to push the creative envelope when it comes to providing their clients with the best.

Talking about her most memorable experience in her journey she says, “Every project had something new to offer. But, I still hold one blindness awareness project I did long back close to my heart. It was memorable because it widened my perspective. Also, I was surrounded by a lot of beautiful people. The project was a turning point in my career,” she adds.

A multi-talented millennial, Richa is an avid traveller and a fitness enthusiast holding Limca World Record in fitness category.

“Fitness is for myself. One should worship one’s body,” she believes.  “Photography is my work. It has given me a life, which I’m living right now, so it comes first. Travel is what I like to do in my leisure and all these are interrelated for me. Because, I will be able to travel and do better work only if I’m fit. Travelling has opened a lot of avenues for me. It gave me a lot of inspiration and has given me that global approach,” she adds.

It is hard work, perseverance, learning, studying, and most of all love for what she is doing that made Richa Maheshwari an independent woman and helped her reach this height of success. “I am taking life as it comes; my competition is with none other than myself,” she signs off.