| The Malay Mail | Malaysia | 29 Feb 2016 | Asia Samachar |
By Jordan Barnes
WHEN 39-year-old documentary photographer Kiran Kreer ditched his job in pursuit of a more fulfilling life on the road, his focus adjusted to an unyielding passion.
As opposed to another number on the corporate payroll, he’s now achieving a status of global recognition through illuminating moments captured.
“I’m finally who I am, hence, my website is named iMKIRAN which depicts that I take control of my life and finally do things for myself.” Kiran, speaking to Malay Mail, from temporary abode in India, is the latest feature of AXN’s short form series AXN Attitude: The World Through Kiran’s Lens.
SEE ALSO: Photojournalist Kiran brings ’em light
In 2012, the Kuala Lumpur-born nomad quit his office life, bidding farewell to the capitalist regime by selling all his belongings.
Armed only with a camera, Kiran went on a mission to reveal grief-stricken stories; on the-ground tales of poverty and humanitarian disaster. By means of expression, the images became a “voice”.
“I want to create more words through photography. My photos are avenues for the world to see how the underprivileged are striving for life, at the same ti me, celebrating life as it is as they try and make it better each day,” he said.
Kiran’s portfolio is documented in collections, including Malaysian Tribes and the delicately intimate Portraits. Others are more head-on — Living Through a Typhoon and The Earthquake, the latter an insightful series of people of Nepal coming to terms with last year’s earthquake disaster which killed thousands and left about two million homeless.
“It wasn’t easy for me there,” said Kiran of his five-month stay.
“Aft er refreshing my body and mind, my main priority was to capture the lives of gypsies at the Pushkar camel fair held each year in Rajasthan — a society of India that are still being discriminated and living in poverty,” he said.
“Then I heard about the South Indian floods, my plans changed again and I left for Chennai, Tamil Nadu. I helped in the relief aid, mainly for single mothers who lost their homes to the devastating floods while photographing families living in slums.
“I raised funds to help these mothers and their children with education support and more through the help of a local non-government organisation.”
Through AXN’s Attitude enterprise, Kiran’s cultivated images are exposed to a wider audience across Asia, his largest to date, which prompted attention from Europe and beyond.
“Some memorable pieces have been published in the Netherlands which inspired my friends from Germany and the United States to help with sponsorships for humanitarian efforts,” he said.
“With my stories being published globally, I feel blessed to have received support from numerous altruists and from friends in Malaysia and Asia.”
Kiran’s inspiring voyage to “tell one story at a time” reinstils the sentiment of a picture telling a thousand words.
“Every photo captured through my lens has its own story carved in my mind and heart,” he said.
“It can be tough at ti mes, hitchhiking through mountain roads, sleeping in my tent, not having regular showers or just riding a train for over 30 hours, but when I find a story or a soul to connect with, the energy comes back.”
Aft er confessing to the simplicity of once photographing “random people on the streets of Malaysia”, Kiran’s illustrious drive to unearth narratives that don’t always make the television screens or news portals delves deep into the realm of virtuous living, a desire “to cover bigger current issues”.
“Living with no expectations, I’m eager to see where the universe will take me next. The plan is not to have a plan — just pure and spiritual.”
Check out the #AXNAttitude page: AXN Attitude and spread the ‘AXN Attitude’ with Kiran as he shares his untold stories, only on AXN, Astro channel 721.
[ASIA SAMACHAR is an online newspaper for Sikhs in Southeast Asia and surrounding countries. We have a Facebook page, do give it a LIKE. Follow us on Twitter. Visit our website: www.asiasamachar.com]
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