New Delhi [India], July 18: As a cinematographer, there’s always a storm of thoughts running through your head. From the moment you read the script to the time you’re on set, there’s a constant inner struggle, thinking through everything from art design to costumes.
You have to be extremely mindful of the color scheme. Being in sync with your production designer and costume designer from day one is crucial because they can either elevate or derail the visual language of your film.
On Aankhon Ki Gustaakhiyan, we had a great team. They constantly came up with amazing ideas. My job was to create a first look board for the film—something my team and I put together as a visual reference. We showed it to the director, and he liked it. That eventually became our base reference for the film’s color palette.
On the camera front, our director Santosh Singh didn’t want to go with the conventional over-the-shoulder shots for conversation scenes. We avoided those wherever possible, because Vikrant Massey’s character is blind in the film, and Shanaya’s character is blindfolded (as part of her prep for a role). So there were no eyelines in the traditional sense, and we weren’t bound by typical camera rules.
I have to credit Santosh Singh here—he gives you complete freedom and only steps in when he feels something is deviating from the story. Good ideas are always welcome when they serve storytelling.
For my focus puller, though, it was a nightmare at times, because you can’t expect actors to hit exact marks when they can’t see. So he had to rely on visual judgment and instinct to nail focus beyond standard marks.
Vikrant is fantastic to work with; he intuitively understands where the light is, what lens is being used, and how much movement there is in a dolly shot. That makes a cinematographer’s job a lot easier.
Shanaya, too, was always on point, following instructions to the T. She’s an incredible performer and catches light beautifully. I genuinely think it’s just in her genes.
Aankhon Ki Gustaakhiyan was both challenging and fun. If given the chance, I’d love to work with the same team again and again.
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Divya Agarwal
