A skill he picked up and honed ad interim , while waiting for an expected call from the Indian Overseas Bank (IOB), has taken S Sukumar places, the latest being Tokyo. Capturing timeless images of triumph and disappointment at sports’ grand stand, the Olympics, Sukumar returned to Chennai from Tokyo early this week, the excitement still intact.
Sports photography is his calling card today, but it all began as just plain fascination with freezing images. At IOB, 44 years ago, it did not take his colleagues long to notice his ability with the camera, which made him its unofficial photographer. It was a talent that would not stay confined to one institution. Other banks noticed it, and it eventually had Reserve Bank of India bestowing the official photographer status on him. It would lead to his KRAs being reframed, allowing him leeway in how he completed his regular work.
With another spurt of initiative, Sukumar would become a valuable contributor to major news photo syndicates including Getty Images, the Press Trust of India and Agence France Press. He took up VRS to focus on his passion. While cutting his news photography tooth, he concentrated on portraits, as that provided huge learning opportunities. That many of his photos made it to magazine wrappers, including The Illustrated Weekly of India, was a shot in the arm.
“I chose to remain a freelancer as working for an organisation would limit my opportunities. My photographs have been published in almost all publications,” reveals Sukumar, only ruing the fact that publications using syndicated photographs rarely acknowledge the photographer.
His journey in sports photography began in 1984 when he covered the India-Australia match at Chepauk stadium.
His achievements in it read like a shopping list: Summer Olympics, the Asian Games, FIFA World Cup, the US Open, Wimbledon, and MOTO GB in Malaysia. Besides, he has done coffee table books of Rio Olympics and an exclusive album on gymnastics especially for Deepa Karmakar. He has developed an album on Sania Naiwal as well, earning her appreciation.
As he lugged his camera equipment to the various Olympic venues in Tokyo, there was the comfort that comes from not having to count costs. Air India had sponsored his tickets and Neyveli Lignite Corporation, his equipment.
Through the years, his work had always invited sponsorships from companies in the State and several nationalised banks, either to buy equipment or to meet travel expenses, making more work possible. An American company Twisted Boots has been his sponsor for many years now, he says.
At the Tokyo Olympics, he represented the United News of India. A lost opportunity to go to London Olympics through AFP was the turning point, discloses Sukumar.
He went as a freelancer. “I struggled to arrange for ₹ 4.5 lakh for the trip. When I returned I organised an exhibition of my work and he recovered his expenses,” the photographer recalls.
Through the years, including the time he was in the banking sector, Sukumar has splurged on purchase of camera equipment. “My wife was also a bank employee and she was supportive. But after watching my struggles my children did not want to take up photography,” says the 66-year-old.
He has been organising vocational training for Corporation school students, and plans to revive it when schools reopen.
