Indian cinematographers work in a number of regional film centres: Mumbai for films in Marathi and Hindi, Hyderabad for Telugu films, Chennai for Tamil films, Kochi for films in Malayalam, Kolkata for Bengali films, Bangalore for Kannada films, etc. Most Indian cinematographers are known for their work with one regional industry. [1] [2] Some cinematographers belong to various professional organisations and trade unions.
The Western India Cinematographers Association (WICA) is a society for Indian cinematographers. The society is situated at Mumbai in Maharashtra. Members of this society include the suffix WICA after their name in film credits. The organisation was formed on 2 August 1953 in Mumbai, and was presided over by a leading cinematographer of the time, Faredoon Irani; in the following month the first office bearers were chosen, including Nitin Bose as President and V. Avadhut as the Vice-President. [3] According to WICA, there are 3800 members of the organisation. [4]
The Southern India Cinematographers Association (SICA), a trade union, was founded on 27 November 1972 by A. Vincent. [5]
The Indian Society of Cinematographers (ISC) is an educational, cultural, and professional organization founded in 1995. Neither a labor union nor a guild, ISC membership is by invitation and is extended only to directors of photography and special effects experts with distinguished credits in the film industry. The society is situated at Thiruvananthapuram in Kerala. The members of this society will show a suffix, ISC with their name in film credits. [6] Sunny Joseph is the current president of the ISC.
John Abraham was an Indian filmmaker, short story writer and screenwriter who worked mainly in Malayalam cinema. His film Amma Ariyan (1986) was the only South Indian feature film to make the list of "Top 10 Indian Films" of all time by British Film Institute. Agraharathil Kazhuthai was listed among the "100 Greatest Indian Films" of all time by IBN Live's 2013 poll.
The National Film Award for Best Cinematography is one of the National Film Awards presented annually by the National Film Development Corporation of India. It is one of several awards presented for feature films and awarded with Rajat Kamal.
Ravi K. Chandran is an Indian cinematographer and film director who predominantly works in Hindi, Malayalam, and Tamil-language cinema. His career began in 1991 with the Malayalam film Kilukkampetti. He is the founding member of the Indian Society of Cinematographers (ISC) and has won two Filmfare Awards and one Southern Filmfare Award.
Parallel cinema or New Indian Cinema, is a film movement in Indian cinema that originated in the state of West Bengal in the 1950s as an alternative to the mainstream commercial Indian cinema.
Anandabhadram is a 2005 Indian Malayalam-language dark fantasy horror film based on the novel of the same name by Sunil Parameshwaran directed by Santosh Sivan. The story concerns ghosts, spirits, and black magic. The film stars Prithviraj Sukumaran, Kavya Madhavan, Manoj K Jayan, Kalabhavan Mani, and Biju Menon.
K. Ramachandra Babu was an Indian cinematographer of over 125 films, out of which most are Malayalam films. He also worked for films in Tamil, Telugu, Hindi, Arabic and English languages. He served as the cinematographer for several documentaries and advertisement films as well. He was the founder of the Indian Society of Cinematographers (ISC).
Sunny Joseph is an Indian cinematographer and director from Kerala, most known for his work in Shaji N. Karun classic, Piravi, for which he won the 1988 Kerala State Film Award for Best Photography and Caméra d'Or — Mention Spéciale at the 1989 Cannes Film Festival. He has Post Graduate Diploma in Cinematography from the Film and Television Institute of India (FTII), Pune. He is a former Chairman and General Secretary of Indian Society of Cinematographers, (ISC).
Venugopal Pillai, popularly known as Venu, is an Indian cinematographer and film director who works mainly in Malayalam cinema. An alumnus of the Film and Television Institute of India, Pune and CMS college Kottayam. He has been the recipient of four National Film Awards, including three for Best Cinematography and one Indira Gandhi Award for Best Debut Film of a Director, and four Kerala State Film Awards. He is a founding member of the Indian Society of Cinematographers (ISC).
Passenger is a 2009 Indian Malayalam-language conspiracy thriller film written and directed by debutant Ranjith Sankar and starring Sreenivasan, Dileep, Mamta Mohandas, Jagathy Sreekumar and Nedumudi Venu in major roles. It was a path breaker in Malayalam cinema in terms of its story telling and started the Malayalam new cinema wave. Owing to its critical and commercial success, Passenger was to be remade into Tamil as Muriyadi by Selva.
Ekalavyan is a 1993 Indian Malayalam-language neo-noir action thriller film directed by Shaji Kailas and written by Renji Panicker. It stars Suresh Gopi in lead role, alongside an ensemble cast of Siddique, Geetha, Narendra Prasad, Vijayaraghavan, Ganesh Kumar, Janardhanan, Madhu, Maathu, Jagathy Sreekumar, Kuthiravattam Pappu and Devan.
Swathi Thirunal is a 1987 Indian Malayalam-language biographical film co-written and directed by Lenin Rajendran. The film is based on the life of Swathi Thirunal Rama Varma, the Maharaja of Travancore. It stars Anant Nag in the title role, with Srividya, Nedumudi Venu and Murali in other important roles. The cinematographer was Madhu Ambat.
Makaramanju is a 2011 Malayalam language romantic drama film written and directed by Lenin Rajendran. The film is about a certain stage in the life of a celebrated painter, Raja Ravi Varma. It also narrates the story of the epic character, Pururavas. Cinematographer Santhosh Sivan and Karthika Nair appear in the lead roles. The movie is the latter's major Malayalam debut.
Madhu Ambat is an Indian cinematographer who predominately works in Malayalam and Tamil-language films apart from a few English, Hindi, Telugu, Kannada, Bengali and Sanskrit films. With a career spanning over 40 years, he is one of the most prolific cinematographers in Indian cinema. He is best known for his work in films such as Amaram, Anjali, and Makaramanju. He currently resides in Chennai, Tamil Nadu. He has won the National Film Award for Best Cinematography thrice. He is a member of the Indian Society of Cinematographers (ISC).
{{Infobox film | name = Kalikaalam | image = Kalikalam.jpg | caption = | director = Reji Nair | writer = Reji Nair | narrator = | producer = Pilakandi Mohammed Ali | starring = Sharada
Lalu Alex
[[ Satthya ]]
Ashokan
Suresh Krishna
Shari
Lakshmi Sharma
Mamukkoya
Kozhikode Narayanan Nair
Sreehari | music = Ousepachan | editing = Ranjan Abraham | cinematography = Madhu Ambat | studio = Pilakandi Films International | distributor =
Celluloid Man is a 2012 documentary film directed by Shivendra Singh Dungarpur that explores the life and work of legendary Indian archivist P. K. Nair, founder of the National Film Archive of India and guardian of Indian cinema.
Ashok Kumar Aggarwal was an Indian cinematographer who worked mainly in the South Indian film industry. In a career that spanned nearly four decades, he worked in over 125 feature films in Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam, and Hindi languages. Aggarwal was a member of the Indian Society of Cinematographers (ISC).
Janam is a 1993 Indian Malayalam-language film directed by Viji Thampi and starring Murali, Siddique and Geetha in the lead roles.