Homage to Cinematographer Ashok Kumar, ISC

It was the most crowded day of the year at Thekkinkadu Maidanam at Thrissur, for it was the final day of the famous Thrissur Pooram Festival, in 1976.  People from all over Kerala had thronged there to watch the visually spectacular Kudamattom ( Changing of the colourful umbrellas ) and the massive  parade of caparisoned elephants, hear the chenda melam and the final blasts of spectacular fireworks. My self and renowned Director Ramu Kariat  with crew were looking for a vantage point in the ground for placing the camera and artistes to shoot a few sequences for our Malayalam film DWEEPU. While passing by,  we luckily came across another pair of Director and Cinematographer who were also there to shoot the Pooram festival. Director J.D. Thottan and Cinematographer Ashok Kumar were there for the shoot of  their film NURAYUM PATHAYUM. There is a saying in Malayalam " Poorapparambil kandu muttiya pole" (like  meeting in the crowded Pooram Grounds). It was not such a  meeting either. as Director J.D. Thottan and Poet Vayalar Rama Varma had lived for some time below the flat where John Abraham and I were staying during the shooting of our film VIDYARTHIKALE ITHILE ITHILE.

Myself, Ramu Kariat, Krishnan Munnad (AD), Ashok Kumar, J.D.Thottan

I had seen  John Sankaramangalam's  JANMABHOOMI ( cinematography by Ashok Kumar), while I was a student at the Film Institute of India, Poona in 1969.  Later on Director P.N.Menon came to the Institute with his film KUTTIYEDATHI, also cinematography by Ashok Kumar.  Afterwards, when I started working at Madras I had often been to the sets of Director P.N.Menon and had watched Ashok working there. Once I went to Kollam Neela Hotel with Director N.N. Pisharoady for obtaining the dates of  Rani Chandra for our film RAGGING. At the time the  shooting of  Director P.N.Menon's film CHEMBARATHY was going on at the hotel and I found Ashok working  and spent some time there.

At Madras, Director P.N.Menon asked me to shoot in place of Ashok for a day,  a few scenes of Surasu for the film DARSANAM. After the shoot I was requested to shoot the title cards at their office. When I went there, there were only blank cards but P.N.Menon came there with some charcoal sticks and wrote the cards so fast, before I fixed one and photographed it, the next one was ready!

P.N.Menon played a great part in molding the cinematography of Ashok. He never gave time or enough lights and forced  Ashok  to improvise all the time and do experiments. He could learn how to use minimum lights and create great naturalistic lighting effect. Being a painter P.N.Menon  planned his shots with light and shade and gave complete freedom for Ashok to experiment with cinematographic techniques.That mentoring by Director P.N.Menon made a lot of difference to Ashok' style of cinematography in his later career.

After his film MULLUM MALARUM, Director J.Mahendran was looking for a cinematographer for his film UDHIRIPPOOKKAL. He asked me to work in that film, but unfortunately I was doing Director Bharathan's film  and the dates were overlapping and  I expressed my inability to him. Then he asked me to suggest a suitable cinematographer from the Malayalam film industry and the first name that came to my mind was Ashok Kumar. Thus started a very creative and successful collaboration  between Director J.Mahendran and Ashok Kumar, which resulted in some of the great films of Tamil Industry.

His later Tamil films were more commercial by nature and his style changed into glamour photography  as seen in films like Jeans where he had exquisitely captured the beauty of Aishwarya Roy like never before. 

He was also in the forefront in promoting women cinematographers by taking B.R.Vijayalakshmi and Suhasini under his wing. Also many people are of the impression that he passed out from Poona Film Institute, but he had done his DFT ( Diploma in Film Technology ) from the Madras ( Adayar) Institute.

During the shooting of Director Sasi Kumar's RANDU LOKAM due to the non availability of enough dates from the actors, we planned to have a second unit to shoot simultaneously for a few days. I requested Ashok and he gladly accepted and worked alongside  me. Also when I was unable to complete Director P.N. Menon's Tamil film DEVATHAI, halfway through Ashok joined and completed the film and both our names can be found together in the credit titles.

After the 70 MM film PADAYOTTAM Director Jijo was looking for some more advanced technology and I suggested him to go for 3D and gave him some books on it. Armed with that , he went to U.S. and returned back with some test films which were projected at Udaya Studios Alleppey. Ashok who was there at the time shooting Director Fazil's film  watched it too and offered his time, unconditionally, and thus got into India's First 3D film. I was invited  to the sets of MY DEAR KUTTICHATTHAN by Director Jijo and watched the shooting for a day at the NAVODAYA Studios.

Although he concentrated more on Tamil Films he found time to come to Thiruvananthapuram  for the Inauguration of Indian Society of Cinematographers by Master Cinematographer Subrata Mitra and became a Founder Member of ISC

Though he passed away physically his contribution to Indian Cinema will stand as testimony of his Cinematographic  Art forever.

D.Gautaman , Genius away from the limelight

When I joined the Film Institute, Poona in 1968  one of the Diploma Films from the earlier batch which impressed me most was " A Love Tale" which was Directed by D.Gautaman. The way a car accident sequence's  shots were edited was a real eye opener of how shots can be taken and used to create an impact much like the famous shower scene in PSYCHO directed by  Alfred  Hitchcock. The film went on to win many awards Nationally and Internationally. His  student Documentary " The Builders" also won a few awards.

D. Gautaman, as student at Film Institute

 A brilliant student, Gautaman passed out from the Film Institute with Gold Medal along with Prem Sagar ( Motion Picture Photography) and Navin Nischol (Acting)  who both became stars in their respective fields.

At the Convocation -  Front row, extreme right is Gautaman and next to him is Prem Sagar

I was sure that Gautaman will definitely  become a great feature film maker in the Indian Film scenario. For some time he had worked in the Institute as part time lecturer and had also directed a Diploma film "A View from the Fort" in which Radha Saluja did the lead role and I think cienematography was done by Bala Mahendran. It was during his sojourn at the Institute I had the the opportunity to get acquainted with him.He was quiet by nature, with an unassuming personality.It was he who proclaimed that John Abraham was a Genius, says his friend and alumni Kabeer Rowther.

Gautaman later on joined Shri Ramu Kariat to assist him in the Malayalam Feature film ABHAYAM. It ws he who recommended Bala Mahendran as a talented Cinematographer to Director Ramu Kariat  and brought him to Madras from Ceylon. In those days except for Acting students in Bombay few of the Institute Graduates could get a break in the film industry. He found it hard to face  life's insecurities at the Film Industry and sought security of Government job at the Films Division. I was told that he was selected for the job of Producer by none other than the great V. Shantaram. He was much impressed when during the interview Gautaman recollected from memory a long list of films directed by Shantaram !

For Films Division he had produced many Nationally and Internationally award winning Documentaries and rose up to the top as the Chief Producer and retired. Though he ws a native of Kerala, he settled with his family in Bangalore. After retirement  he became a Member of  Advisory Committee of U.P.S.C. While on duty in Delhi for conducting an interview he had  massive heart attack and passed away on 18 th February 2013.

D.Gautaman

He was 73, and  is survived by his wife Saramma and son Soumendhu.

It was a great loss to the Film Industry that he did not attempt to make any Feature film though he was one of the most talented Directors of our time. But Films Division becme the winner by having him at its helm and Documentaries became his forte. Film Industry's loss became Films Division's gain!

Unfortunately his passing way was not given its due importance in the media since  he chose to  work away from the limelight. All I could find only was a  small obituary note in Mathrubhumi Malayalam Newspaper.

 

He really deserves much more recognition than this. I do hope that his friends and well wishers would  come out with their memoirs and fill the void. I was told that even  on the night before his death he was talking of his time at the  Film Institute  and reminiscing about his fellow alumni who made it into the film industry.

My heartfelt condolences to his bereaving family.

Vidyarthikale Ithile Ithile Part 3 - Arrival of Bala Mahendran at Madras

One day while walking towards our Producer Minnal's office at Wallajah Road, Triplicane, a tall lean man approached me. When he came near I recognized him, it was Bala Mahendran with out his French beard. I had known him at the Institute as he was my senior by one year and was also  the batch mate of John Abraham and Azad. During the Institute days he had a different look with  receding hair and a French beard  and had not started wearing his trade mark cap. He was mostly  found in the company of foreign students since he was a native  of Ceylon. Even though most of the time he spoke in English, since his name was Bala Mahendran I guessed that he must be knowing Tamil and I used to speak to him in Tamil when ever I met  him on a few  occasions. He was a reclusive person and had only a few friends mostly foreigners and some South Indians at the Institute. His peers at the Institute told me that he was such a romantic person that even when he visited Budhawar Peth Red light  area he used to take flowers, kaajal, bras etc as gifts to his regular  girls there.

 

Bala Mahendran

A tired looking Balu was extremely  happy to see me at Wallajah Road and narrated his sad condition.  D. Gautaman, his senior at the Institute in  Direction  who was working as assistant to Director Ramu Kariat had recommended Bala Mahendran for his next colour film NELLU. Hoping that the film will start soon, Bala arrived in Madras and was staying with some distant relatives. The start of the film got delayed and with no income, his relatives were about to show him the door. He was on the look out for alternate accommodation and  had no money as Ramu Kariat had gone to Kerala for the shooting of another film. He also didn't have much friends at Madras and was roaming around. It was then he happened to see me on Wallajah road.  On learning about his pathetic condition, I offered to take him up with me for staying in our producer's flat at Mahalingapuram. At that time there was a break in our shooting schedule and all others like John, Azad etc  had left for their native places and I was living there alone and it was easy to accommodate him there.

My producer Minnal on his way to his office used to come there and   give me  money  for the day's food expenses and I used that amount to feed both of us. After a few days I had to go home for Deepavali  and Bala could not be left there as  he was not in a position to meet his daily expenses in my absence. So I decided to take him along  with me to my  home at  Maduranthakam which was 50 miles away from Madras. There he stayed for a few days with my family and then we returned to Madras together. Soon  Ramu Kariat returned from his Kerala location shooting and Bala managed to get some money and found alternate accommodation, but he still remained unemployed.

In the mean time myself and Kasturi Kurthy  had to go Poona for my Viva Voce  examinations. But a few days of the busy actress Jaya Bharathi was available and all of a sudden the shooting of a song sequence was planned on the same dates. So I had to find an alternate cameraman to do the  work  in my absence. Since Bala was from the Institute and  batch mate of John and Azad, I suggested to let Bala do the work.  John preferred some one from the Institute and he accepted Bala. Thus Bala started his career in feature films  by cranking the camera under the direction of  John Abraham for a song picturisation sequence in the film VIDYARTHIKALE ITHILE ITHILE.

The film Nellu took still longer to materialize and Bala used to visit us often as we were all from the Poona Film Institute. K.G.George who had joined Ramu Kariat also was part of our group.  In the meantime Director P.N.Menon was on the lookout for a cameraman for his B&W Malayalam film " PANIMUDAKKU " ( Strike). Bala got the break to work as an independent cameraman for a feature film.The film was to be shot in a place called Puthukkad near Trichur, Kerala. At that time Bala didn't have  an exposure meter the essential tool for any cameraman. He didn't have the money to buy one either and even if he had, he need to place an order with the Xaca company at Mount road and it will take weeks to arrive from Bombay.

Since I wasn't shooting at that time, I lent him my own exposure meter and also sent my friend Kasturi Murthy who was working with me to be his assistant for the film. After the shooting started, from the money  I obtained from the producers of that film I purchased a new Sekonic exposure meter and sent it over to Bala's location.  Kasturi Murthy later kept on associated with him for  many of Bala's films.

The film NELLU  still needed more time  to materialize, but soon  Ramu Kariat started a B&W film MAYA and gave Bala the opportunity to work with him. Ramu Kariat was the main  reason behind Bala coming to India from Ceylon.  Meanwhile he had changed his name into Balu Mahendra and is now known only by that name.

In spite of having done this much for him he had  never  shown the courtesy of inviting me inside his  home on the two or three occasions that I visited his residence at  Madras. He always met me at the gate and saw me off, never letting me in. Strange!

May be he was too much  protective or possessive   about his family !