Indrani (photographer)

Early life, modeling career

Indrani was born in Kolkata, India, raised in the ruined 300-room palace of her historic Zamindar family, and accompanied her British mother volunteering with Mother Teresa. Both her parents were accountants. She witnessed "the devastating poverty that stood in stark contrast to her own childhood," which motivated her to someday make a difference in the area.

Indrani began modeling at 14, in order to study photography and film with artists around the world, and became a rising star. At 18, she returned to turn her family home into a charitable school, to give girls a better future. The school was named Shakti Empowerment Education and currently educates around 300 youth, both girls and boys and provides women with literacy and vocational training.

Indrani received a full scholarship to Princeton University. She reinstated the study of Sanskrit, spearheaded the student initiative to create a program in South Asian Studies, and graduated with a magna cum laude (with High Honors) AB in Cultural Anthropology.

According to Fast Company, "When Markus Klinko and Indrani Pal-Chaudhuri teamed up...both were already stars--Klinko as a classical harpist and Indrani as a fashion model. Now they are famous for their iconic images of celebrities...and advertising projects."

Photography career

While Indrani was a student at Princeton University, David Bowie discovered her work and commissioned her first album cover for his Heathen with Klinko. Indrani's fashion work was discovered by Isabella Blow, a "renowned style icon who discovered some of the fashion world's most important figures," who commissioned cover stories for the London Sunday Times. Around the same time, Ingrid Sischy, at Interview magazine commissioned various shoots. Indrani credits Blow, Bowie and Iman for teaching her to push her creative boundaries. Indrani created award-winning covers for Beyoncé's solo debut Dangerously in Love, Mariah Carey's Emancipation of Mimi and Mary J. Blige's The Breakthrough among others.

Indrani's work has been published in over 25 books and shown in over 20 exhibitions, such as the National Portrait Gallery in Washington DC in 2013, "Dancing the Dream". In 2013 the Lincoln Center presented a week-long 30-piece public art exhibition Icons, to accompany the release of the photobook, Icons: The celebrity exposures of Markus and Indrani, published by Perseus Press. Icons is described as the product of 18 years as "a visionary tour de force" by Katie Amey for Elle; and “High-concept and hyperrealism commingle” by Kimberley Jones for the Austin Chronicle.

An exhibition at the Pacific Design Center LA was presented by the Lucie Foundation in concert with the Month of Photography Los Angeles and the Farmani Gallery, and the Icons Exhibition of her work was presented by The Angel Orensanz Foundation for Contemporary Art NY and Bravo TV to celebrate "Double Exposure" on June 16, 2010.

Directing career

Indrani has won acclaim as a director, cinematographer and executive producer of films and commercials. Her video and stills campaign with TBWA-Chiat-Day for Keep a Child Alive against AIDS in India and Africa won two gold lions at Cannes in 2011. Indrani directed a short documentary for PSI and the UN's Nothing But Nets featuring ambassador actress Mandy Moore. She directed The Girl Epidemic to raise awareness of female infanticide for Project Nanhi Kali with ad agency Strawberry Frog. Described by the Huffington Post's Katherine Brooks as "powerful" and by Scott Goodson for Forbes: "brilliant and provocative!" Her short "Crescendo," curated by Pepsi's Beats of the Beautiful Game, uses football to empower girls in India and is described by Julianne Shepherd of Jezebel as a "Rad Feminist Short Film...A jubilant, sweet clip...(with) an underlying feminist message"" and by Katherine Brooks of The Huffington Post as "Photographer uses football to empower girls in India" in partnership with nonprofits Sambhali Trust, Yuwa, and SEEschool.

In 2013 Indrani directed David Bowie's "Valentine's Day" video, about which Eric Danton of Rolling Stone says Bowie "radiates intensity" and Robin Hilton of NPR says "it is thrilling and intense" and Louise Sanders of The Daily Mail calls "Dazzling." Also in 2013 Indrani directed a music video for Alicia Keys' "New Day" described as "bold and high-energy" by Jenna Rubenstein for MTV, as well as music videos for Mary J. Blige and Mariah Carey in 2014.

"The Legend of Lady White Snake" short film was written and directed by Indrani, inspired by an ancient Chinese story, with a poem by Neil Gaiman, "The Hidden Chamber" starring "fashion icon and brewery fortune heiress" Daphne Guinness in costumes by GK Reid and Alexander McQueen.

"Till Human Voices Wake Us", a short film produced by Rick Schwartz (Black Swan, Gangs of New York), was written and directed by Indrani, creative directed and executive produced by GK Reid, and stars Lindsay Lohan and a dozen new actresses the team discovered through a large talent search. A dream within a dream, of Selkies, mythical creatures that are women on land and seals in water, the film reminds viewers of the magic and mysteries of the creatures of the sea, and is a plea for sustainability of the oceans.÷

For "Girl Rising, India" a feature-length film for girls' empowerment, Indrani directed the Bollywood stars Freida Pinto, Priyanka Chopra, Alia Bhatt, Kareena Kapoor, Nandita Das Priyanka Chopra Sushmita Sen and Madhuri Dixit for the original Indian content, with a video and photo campaign which she also shot, that trended on Twitter when released on August 29, 2015.

Films which Indrani has directed and produced have won numerous awards including first prize in four categories at the Los Angeles Independent Film Festival 2015 for "Best Picture," "Best Visual Effects," "Best Costumes" and "Best Production Design; "Best Film," "Best Director" and "Best Design" at the London Fashion Film Festival 2015, "Best of Festival" at the Princeton Film Festival, 2015, "Best Film" at the International Fashion Film Festival Los Angeles 2015, first prize in the top four categories at the International Fashion Film Festival at the Museum of Contemporary Art, San Diego, including "Best Film," "Best Director," "Best Fashion," "Best Special Effects" and the RED Camera Award, have screened at the Milan Fashion Film Festival and the Los Angeles Short Film Festival 2015

Awards

Indrani's work has won many awards:

TV series and media

Indrani, Klinko, and creative director GK Reid were the subjects of Bravo reality show called Double Exposure" documenting their photo shoots from initial thought to hard copy. According to Troy Patterson of Slate, “Themes include the aesthetics of desire, the symbiosis of artist and muse.” The show is described by Zoë Ruderman as “like America's Next Top Model and Project Runway mixed together and on speed.”

Created in the US for the Bravo network, Double Exposure has been syndicated in over a hundred countries.

Indrani has been a guest on America's Next Top Model, Make Me a Supermodel, and was interviewed for E! News, Access Hollywood, Fashion Television, CNN's Showbiz Tonight and Larry King Live.

Philanthropy

At the age of 18, Indrani founded Shakti Empowerment Education otherwise known as SEEschool.org, turning her family's palace into a school for poor kids. The school provides free education to 300 impoverished children in her native Kolkata, India, with an emphasis on the rights of girls. "She is in charge of fundraising, advertising, and development." Pesta of The Daily Beast says "Indrani changes the fate of forgotten girls...and is fighting to give girls a better future." Shinjini Das of the Huffington Post wrote that "Indrani is internationally recognized for her extensive work on social causes and her video and stills campaigns."

Indrani was Special Advisor to the UNGMDF World Fashion Forum and Director of Relations at the UN World Film Forum 2013-2015.