I’m Jwala Kotesh.

A visual journalist based in Hyderabad. I document news, everyday life and the people shaping South India — from city streets to coastal communities.

Through my lens

Photograph 01 / 39

01 Recent work

Every frame, a human story.

Workers draw a shrimp net through a farm pond in Nellore district, Andhra Pradesh.

6 frames

Business / August 202501

When global trade comes home.

Nellore, Andhra Pradesh

Residents queue with LPG cylinders outside a gas agency in Hyderabad.

6 frames

News / March 202602

A city in the queue.

Hyderabad, Telangana

A salt-pan worker harvests salt from an evaporation pond in Isakapalle, Nellore district.

1 frame

Labour / May 202603

The labour behind the salt.

Isakapalle, Andhra Pradesh

A pedestrian uses an umbrella while walking through a flooded street in Hyderabad.

4 frames

Environment / 2025 — 202604

A city under pressure.

Hyderabad & Nellore

People shelter from rain with chairs during a public meeting at Parade Grounds in Telangana.

6 frames

Politics / Selected coverage05

The public square.

Telangana, India

A Theyyam artist performs at a Kerala cultural exchange festival in Hyderabad.

4 frames

Culture / 2021 — 202606

Ritual, colour, everyday life.

South India

Tyler Bowers races in the Indian Supercross Racing League at Gachibowli Stadium, Hyderabad.

4 frames

Sports / Selected coverage07

The fraction of a second.

Hyderabad, Telangana

A worker packs flour bags at a wholesale market in Hyderabad.

3 frames

Labour / 2024 — 202508

Work that holds the day together.

Hyderabad & Nellore

A visitor passes the Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories exhibit at BioAsia 2026 in Hyderabad.

4 frames

Business / 202609

Inside a changing economy.

Hyderabad, Telangana

An olive ridley sea turtle hatchling emerges at a protected hatchery along the Nellore shore.

1 frame

Environment / April 202610

A first journey to the sea.

Nellore, Andhra Pradesh

Looking closely. Listening first. Staying curious.

From a newsroom in Telangana to the shrimp farms of coastal Andhra Pradesh, my work follows the people living the story.

Based in Hyderabad. Available for editorial assignments and documentary projects across South India.

More about Jwala

03 From the field

The reporting continues.

Selected reporting and published photographs

01The Iran War’s Hidden Victim: The Green Energy Supply ChainForbesPhotograph credit · March 2026 02US Tariff Blow to Indian Shrimp MarketNurPhotoEditorial photo series · August 2025 03India Salt HarvestReuters ConnectEditorial photograph · May 2026 04India Air PollutionNurPhotoEditorial photo series · March 2026 05Bonalu festival processionCultureAugust 2026 06India’s trade unions protestLabourAugust 2026 07HPV vaccination awarenessPublic healthFebruary 2026