Ramii Studio

Abhi Chinniah is a portrait photographer and writer. Born in Ōtautahi Christchurch to Jaffna Tamil Malaysian parents, Abhi grew up in East Coast Malaysia and now lives in Aotearoa, New Zealand. Drawing from her lived experiences, Abhi uses portraiture to elevate marginalised voices, women of colour, and migrant communities and to explore colourism. Her debut photographic series, “Light Skin Dark Skin” explored the journeys people have to take because of the colour of their skin. This series went on to be acquired by The National Library of New Zealand.

Her acclaimed photo essay “Melanin Rising” uses portraits, essays and interviews to understand skin-lightening practices and media representation of dark-skinned people.