Despite holding a bachelor`s degree in computer science from the Institute of Aeronautical Engineering in Hyderabad, Karthik Ghattamaneni chose to pursue a career in the film industry. Wanting to become a director, Karthik attempted to join the FTTI in Pune, however, he couldn`t get through, which is when he pursued a year-long course in cinematography at Rajeev Menon`s Mindscreen Institute.

In 2007, Karthik, along with his friends from his engineering institute, founded the Pondfreaks Entertainment, a short film production house based in Hyderabad. Under the banner, they have produced several critically acclaimed short films, one of which, titled Infinity, is directed by Karthik and released in 2012. The short film garnered massive critical acclaim and came to the notice of several established artists across industries in the country.

After the release of Infinity, Karthik was approached by the then-aspiring director Pavan Sadineni, offering him to be associated with his directorial debut Prema Ishq Kaadhal in 2013. Following his debut as a cinematographer in 2013, Karthik was associated with the Telugu mystery thriller Karthikeya, which won him a Best Cinematographer -Telugu nomination at the 4th South Indian International Movie Awards.

The following year, in 2015, he made his debut as a director with the romantic movie Surya vs Surya, which he was also associated with as a cinematographer. The movie starring Nikhil Siddharth and Tridha Choudhury in lead roles opened to positive reviews from critics and was also well-received by the audience.

Best known for his work in primarily the Telugu film industry, Karthik has been associated with movies such as Express Raja, Premam, Radha, Ninnu Kori, Awe!, Krishnarjuna Yudham and Disco Raja. His other notable works include Bloody Mary (2022), Dhamaka (2022), Karthikeya 2 (2022) and Kalyanam Kamaneeyam (2023). He then directed and edited Ravi Teja starrer Eagle (2024).