I`m, not too used to being in front of the camera,” Kirti Narain tells mid-day, with a laugh, after her photo shoot with us. “But I’m always incredibly comfortable behind it.” 

 Since moving to Mumbai last year after earning a Master’s degree in photography and electronic media in LA, Narain has made a name for herself in the City of Dreams. Her journey, however, has been far from easy. “I have always had a tendency for self-doubt,” she tells us, “and when I moved here, nobody knew who I was. To make things worse, it was the monsoon, and so there was no scope for outdoor photoshoots.” She explains that Mumbai’s competitive nature continues to be intimidating, but admits that the city set her on the path to greater success. “In Mumbai, all you have to do is look out of the window, and you see people working extremely hard to succeed here. This is what drives me to achieve. To stay in this city, you work hard.”