CELLULOID IS MORE BEAUTIFUL THAN REALITY

By K B Venu

Amal Neerad carved his niche as a stylish cinematographer and filmmaker armed with his excellent academic background as an alumnus of the Satyajith Ray Film and Television Institute and an unflinching commitment to mainstream cinema. Amal’s diploma film won the national award for best cinematographer in the short feature section. Later he stayed in Berlin for two years as part of an exchange programme and made a short film called Fourth World. Before starting his career as a filmmaker Amal had his stint as cinematographer with the Varma Corporation. Both the Malayalam feature films he directed were commercial hits and had attracted the young audience in the State. Amal was preparing for the shoot of his third feature, Anwar, when K B VENU met him at Kochi.

How did your passion for films begin sprouting?

Right from high school days my dream was to join for direction course at the FTII. The year I graduated from Maharaja’s College, Ernakulam, was a zero year in the FTII. So I started doing my post graduation. Again, the next year also was a zero year in the Institute. At that time, the Satyajit Ray Film and Television Institute had started functioning in Kolkota and I joined its first batch as a student of cinematography.
Why did you join as a student of cinematography?
I had in fact applied for direction course. At that time, the film institutes in the country had insisted that students of cinematography and editing should possess a degree in science. History was my subject for graduation. But science degree was optional according to the SRFTI byelaw. I had a stint as still photographer during my college days and won several accolades in youth festivals for photography. I had some stills with me when I appeared for the interview. The board, comprising of stalwarts of the Satyajith Ray era were impressed by those stills. They advised me to opt for cinematography and I obliged. Perhaps I am the first ever cinematography student in the country without a science degree to study in a national film institute. I had won a national award for best cinematographer for my diploma film, Meena Jha, in the short feature section. At that time, there was a German exchange programme going on. As part of the programme, I went to Berlin along with a direction student in the SRFTI. We spent two years there and did a short film called Fourth World. I wrote the script and wielded camera for the film. It was shot in 35 mm format and was shown in several film festivals across the country.
Why did you go to Bollywood before entering Malayalam industry?
My decision was to work in Malayalam films. In fact I was determined not to migrate to Bollywood. Most of the students passing out from national film institutes chose to work in other languages, especially Bollywood. They went to Mumbai either from Pune or from Kolkota. I had some regional spirits when I passed out from the Institute. I spent two years in Kerala, waiting for chances to work in Malayalam films. Though I had two short films to my credit, one a national award winner and the other made in Berlin, nobody showed any interest in me. Many directors appreciated my show reel but there was no space for me in their films. They said the producers were not interested in experimenting with a new cinematographer. But since I was active in making advertisement films, I had no financial problems. By October 2003, I got a call from a director belonging to the Varma Corporation who had watched my diploma film. I sent him the show reel. Since Ram Gopal Varma was the producer of the film, the next day itself I got the flight ticket. I went to Mumbai and did the film James with them. Then came the Malayalam film Black, directed by Ranjith. I came to Kerala almost like a cinematographer belonging to the Bollywood, did the film and went back. I worked two more films for Varma Corporation-Darna Jaroori Hain and Shiva.
Then came your directorial debut, Big B…
It was because of Mammootty who was doing the lead role in Black that I could do my first film. While I was shooting for Black, I was not aware of the norms of the Malayalam film industry and was not very close to the hero. However, after this film, it was Mammootty himself who expressed willingness to listen to a script if I had one to narrate. At that time Varma Corporation had asked me to direct a film for them. But I chose to work this project with Mammootty because I wanted to do my debut film in that kind of a space. Mammootty is the only star in Malayalam who provides a comfortable working space for a debutant director. The entire crew was fresh hands--the director, scriptwriter, cinematographer, editor, costume designer, poster designer….almost everyone in the technical crew were debutants. We all got this opportunity because Mammootty was willing to work with such a team.
Your films belong to the mainstream category and exhibit off beat trends. What were your influences as a student of cinema?
I used to watch all kinds of movies right from my school days. A mainstream Tamil movie and Antichrist by Lars von Trier can impart equal amount of excitement in me. I was a member of the Cochin film society, which screened a number of classic movies. And, there was a video library called Video House in Ernakulam which had almost all volumes of Bergman, Visconti, Godard and Bunuel. That way I was an avid film watcher right from the VHS era. Even after joining the Institute, I used to go out to the theatres every second or third day though there were regular screening on the campus and the school had a vast video library.
So you do not differentiate between the genres …
I had always tried to escape from being branded as an intellectual filmmaker. That is how mainstream cinema and public usually consider film institute products. That cap will become a handicap when they enter the mainstream industry. I believe in the power and brilliance of mainstream cinema. I will tell you an example. Any other director can plan a different film with the subject of the next film I am making. I mean, the same theme can be converted into an art house type movie. I have seen the kind of crowd in Nandan theatre in Kolkota. I will not be excited if my film is received by that kind of an audience only. I don’t want to entertain those people. I can very well sit with them and talk about great films. I want to be part of popular cinema and communicate to the masses.





What is your new film Anwar all about?

Anwar is different from my previous films. My first two films had their thrust in cinematic elements. They were cinematic from the very first shot. Anwar is going to deal with a more realistic and contemporary issue. At the same time, I have no plan and intention to preach anything to the masses. I want to prove that many “rights” and many “wrongs” exist in our world. The concept of right and wrong is never the same for different people. The main characters in my movie belong to different realities and have separate concepts of truth. Anwar is all about the evolution of these characters. And, I want it to be an absolutely commercial movie.

You are a trained cinematographer. But you employ others to wield camera for your films. Is it because you believe more in donning the mantle of director?

That may be my way of taking vengeance. (Laughs) After coming from SRFTI I had spent two years here with the hope of becoming a cinematographer in Malayalam movies. I have grown up watching excellent cinematographers like Venu and Santhosh Sivan. Cinematographers from Kerala still have that legacy. In Mumbai, Malayali cinematographers have a place of their own. It is almost like bearing an ISI mark. I still remember Bharathan’s Thazhvaram and Padmarajan’s Innale, both cinematographed by Venu, released almost simultaneously in my city. According to me that is the ultimate versatility in cinematography. Those films were different from each other. I do not believe that the cinematographer should have his signature in cinema. That is the reason why I like Innale and Thazhvaram. You will never say that these films were cinematographed by the same person. The cinematographer must behave like a meek and obedient wife who can help in the progress of materializing the director’s vision of the film. A number of film school educated Malayali technicians, mostly cinematographers, go to Bollywood and other filmmaking lands after trying their luck in Malayalam cinema. That had caused deterioration in the quality of cinematography in Malayalam at a particular period. I will be very happy if ten new cinematographers come up in Malayalam because of my films. The historic significance of my first film, Big B, is that it had an altogether fresh crew. Usually when a director makes his debut, the technical crew will consist of experienced hands. But it was the vision of a handful of newcomers that made all the difference in Big B. Like any other part of the country, there are fresh cinematic talents in Kerala too. Given hope, care, space and technical assistance these youngsters too can work as excellently as the technicians we import from other industries providing luxurious facilities. For me, a first time cinematographer who is willing to do anything for his maiden venture is more acceptable than some one who is established in the industry. Even I don’t want to be a professional cinematographer. It is like doing any other ordinary job. Satheesh Kurup, the cinematographer of my new venture, spent an entire month for location hunt. I won’t get a professional cinematographer to do this job for me.


How do you view the advent of state of the art gadgets and devices in cinematography?

I believe in the strength of celluloid despite the advent of digital technology in different formats. My first film was shot in super 16. The next one was shot in Super 35 mm. But in Anwar, I am using a mix of four formats. As for the stock, I have used only Kodak. I am a hundred per cent orthodox Kodak believer right from the film school days. I propose to use their Vision 3 for Anwar. Even for the advertisement films I shoot, I use Kodak. It gives the satisfaction of portraying Indian skin tones to near perfection. I am a cinematographer who insists on printing in Kodak positive itself.
Digital media has many advantages, at least for the budding filmmakers…
I am a celluloid fan. I don’t believe celluloid will lose its supremacy. The beauty of photochemistry will remain forever. However, I have some apprehensions when I scan the present scenario. Most of our theatres have digital projection system now. The “silver screen” has lost the silver in it. Only the screen remains. The spectators no more remember the glow they used to experience on the screen. Nobody realizes the difference. The absolute reproduction of films shot in celluloid doesn’t reach the audience. The advocates of digital format claim of its high resolution. But celluloid has an absolute beauty which is more beautiful than the images we see in real life. There is a comic statement about the difference between pornography and erotica. “Pornography is always frontally lit. Erotica is always backlit.” It’s similar to the difference between sexuality and sensuality. Can any other format achieve the sensuousness of celluloid? I doubt. It is more beautiful than reality. It doesn’t care for achieving clinical precision; but crave for making the hero a super hero. There lies the power of the celluloid.