'I had to make Ash look good'
by: Komal Mehta
- rediff.com
Wondering about that certain something that caught your eye besides Aki Narula's colourful clothes in Jhoom Barabar Jhoom? Thought Abhishek Bachchan was the reason behind that special glow on Aishwarya Rai's face in Umrao Jaan?
No, it was, in fact, cinematographer Ayananka Bose.
Bose earlier assisted the brilliant cinematographer Ravi K Chandran in films like Dil Chahta Hai, Koi... Mil Gaya and Black, before he became independent.
What was the experience of working on a period film like Umrao Jaan?
JP saab (Dutta, director) gave me complete freedom and I had great fun working for that movie. Everything was so spontaneous. JP saab used to unfold the scene on location and as I'm never prepared for a scene beforehand, it was fine by me.
The most important part of cinematography is consistency. Somewhere you catch a thread and try to maintain that throughout the film.
JP saab is brilliant when it comes to framing (the way a shot is set-up) and I've learnt the art from him.
The rumour that JP saab is a very difficult person to work with is untrue. He loves to have fun and pampers his artists. Being on his sets is like being on a holiday. You stay at the best of places, eat the best food and work at your own pace.
Tell us something about cinematography.
I love playing with light and colours and believe in making people look beautiful. That is my way of cinematography.
It does not matter if the frame is as long as the artist looks nice. I love making women look beautiful. I simply cannot make them look ugly. So Umrao Jaan was the perfect platform for me. I had to make Ash look good which was a piece of cake since she's already gorgeous.
I've also been fortunate to observe a lot of big directors at work. I think I keep observing life and that is what comes out later in my frames.
