Born in Mumbai, Maharashtra, Hariharan completed a basic degree in commerce from Poddar College, Mumbai and later joined the Film and Television Institute of India (FTII), Pune to do a course in screen-writing and direction.
[2] After passing out of the FTII, Hariharan formed "Yukt Films Co-operative" together with his batch mates that included Saeed Akhtar Mirza, Kamal Swaroop and their senior FTII alumni Mani Kaul.
[7] In 1991, he made his Bollywood debut through Current that starred Om Puri and Deepti Naval in the lead.
Last service as the Professor of Creative Arts and Director Media Lab at Krea University.
[4] He is a former director of L. V. Prasad Film and TV Academy, Chennai and the dean at Mahindra Ecole Centrale, Hyderabad.