TN CM C Joseph Vijay Photographs Photojournalists at Chennai Secretariat

Photojournalists visiting the Secretariat in Chennai on Wednesday for World Photography Day were met with an unexpected turn of events when Tamil Nadu Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay took up a camera to photograph them instead.

The interaction took place on an active afternoon while the Assembly was in session. A group of media photographers had navigated official permissions and protocol for what they anticipated would be a routine courtesy call with the Chief Minister. However, an aide from the Chief Minister's office emerged to announce that the Chief Minister intended to photograph the assembled journalists, prompting a reaction of disbelief and mild panic among the group.

Taking a camera in hand, Chief Minister Vijay moved among the assembled photojournalists, framing and photographing each of them in turn. The journalists present were veterans of political reporting in the state, having spent years documenting events such as Assembly sessions, floods, heatwaves, and the pandemic.

The gesture was reciprocated by the photojournalists, who presented the Chief Minister with a large photo frame. The frame featured a portrait of Vijay surrounded by dozens of hands holding cameras, along with a visual footnote crediting the anonymous labour behind political photography.

Following the photo session, the Chief Minister spent more than seven minutes interacting directly with the group, taking time out of his packed official schedule during the legislative session.

One astonished photojournalist noted the unusual role reversal, observing that after a lifetime of clicking pictures, the Chief Minister had clicked theirs.

Discussions are reportedly underway regarding a potential larger gathering for the wider photography fraternity after the ongoing Assembly session concludes.