Vijat Mohindra’s Celeb Photo Shoots Are Artsy AF
Celebrity photographer Vijat Mohindra shot Kim Kardashian as the cover for Factice in 2012 and since has photographed the likes of Miley Cyrus, Rihanna, Selena Gomez and more.
He is now focusing on his upcoming exhibition, “Always Believe that Something Wonderful is About to Happen,” which includes a lot of neon colors, naked women and cats.
How did you get your first big break photographing Kim Kardashian?
I love Kim so much for being my first real celebrity that I photographed back in 2009. It was amazing to have her support, which lead to another shoot in 2012 for her fragrance campaign and we are now working on setting up another shoot. I met Kim through her stylist Simone Harouche who is one of the most incredible and talented people I know.
Did you face a lot of rejection at first because your work is so modern and very unique?
I still feel like I face rejection a lot because of the nature of my aesthetic, but I think like anything great it takes time for the general population to understand and accept it.
Who was the hardest celebrity to work with so far?
I never really have had to deal with difficult celebrities, it’s usually their teams that can be a bit tough. I feel very lucky to have worked with such amazing talent that I look up to in so many different ways. I think when they see my love and passion for my work, they are excited to be a part of it, which creates great energy that I think can be seen the pictures.
Which celebrity’s fashion style has influenced the way you photograph and think of your concepts the most?
My favorite era visually is the 1960s and though I gravitated to that naturally throughout my life, I think Nicole Richie’s 60s aesthetic really resonated with me and inspired my vision for my work.
Your new exhibition involves a lot of cats… is there a particular reason you chose that animal?
I am subtly inspired by Instagram and internet culture and cats happen to be one of the most popular things on the web. I wanted to showcase that in my images and I also love the aesthetic of cats as they are mysterious and unpredictable which is sort of an underlying theme in my show.
Your exhibition focuses on staging of the transgender body. What influenced you to center on this?
I love to embrace the differences in everyone and everything, I like to redefine the conventional standard of beauty in my work and open up my audience to the fact that everything is actually beautiful from the right point of view and should be celebrated that way.
If you could photograph any celebrity right now, who would it be and what style would you make it?
I would absolutely LOVE to photograph Beth Ditto, she is a complete inspiration to me and I think we could come up with an incredible shoot. I would definitely shoot it in the style of the images in my solo first exhibition, “Always Believe That Something Wonderful Is About To Happen.” The end goal with my work is to photograph celebrities in my bold and colorful aesthetic.
What comment do you love the most that people say about your work?
I love when people can recognize my design background in my work. When viewers take notice and comment on my compositions and other design elements I really appreciate that.
What theme or concept do you want to focus on next with your work?
