![\"\"](\"http:\/\/thesica.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/11\/Rajiv-Menon-1-300x223.jpg\")
<\/p>\nGlimpse into the life voyage of RAJIV MENON, the legendary cinematographer, focused producer, staunch director, experimenting actor and passionate educator
\nOF BRAWN AND MIGHT\u00a0 BY ANISHA GAKHAR<\/p>\n
continued from previous article ….Volume :2<\/p>\n
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CHENNAI AS HIS FORT<\/strong><\/p>\n When asked about why he chose Chennai as his den, Menon explained, \u201cMy formative years were spent here. When the industry is well-established in a certain place, it\u00a0leapfrogs when a group of talented people LEADING THE PATH<\/strong> THEN AND NOW<\/strong> Menon\u2019s office was flanked by still photography shots of ferocious tigers in the forest. The shots were as real as life. When asked about the same, Menon noted, \u201cI find myself learning and evolving my skills every day. When I\u2019m not shooting, I take out my jeep and still camera and go to the forests to capture nature. One touches the very core of cinematography when one is alone in the forest, without anyone at one\u2019s beck and call, and purely looking through that lens!\u201d exclaimed Menon. In a studio, when the cinematographer wants a tree, the crew arranges for a tree in frame. Everything is under the cinematographer\u2019s command. Menon very meticulously explained that the backdrop of a city plays a key role in understanding the emotion of a place.The horizon, for instance, in Istanbul, would have domes and minarets, while\u00a0that in India, would be trees and greenery. BEHIND EVERY SUCCESSFUL MAN, THERE\u2019S A LOVING MOTHER<\/strong> Above article featured as Cover Story in DIGITAL STUDIO | NOVEMBER 2018<\/p>\n www.digitalstudioindia.com<\/p>\n
\ncome together. Here in Chennai, the likes of Mani Ratnam, Prabhu Deva, P.C. Sreeram and A.R. Rahman had already raised the bar up a notch. Another good thing in Chennai is that is not much influenced by Hindi
\ncinema. In fact it has always been a counter movement. Say, if Bollywood was doing marriages, music and dance; we were doing arty subjects and blood feuds.\u201d
\nChennai also proved to be a little cost effective for production, asserted Menon. \u201cUnlike in mainstream Bollywood where one requires a good star cast and producer\/ director to back a film, a very basic movie plot would earn a profit of around 8 crore in Tamil Nadu. Chennai is also culturally rich, which makes it a conducive environment to tell
\nstories,\u201d said Menon.<\/p>\n
\nMenon led us to his film institute Mindscreen Film Institute (MFi), post our photo shoot and interview.
\nIt started as a school for cinematography in 2006, and branched out to include courses in screenplay writing, film-making, direction, photography and acting. It caters to many aspects of film-making, from the choices cinematographer confronts, to understanding the director and his script, how sound and music transform a scene, and assembling of images in the editing room.
\nThe institute offers aspiring students from around the globe, personal training under the guidance of some of the best teachers in the business, including sessions taken by Menon himself. Many of Menon\u2019s students have
\nworked in movies and web-series.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"http:\/\/thesica.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/11\/Sarvam-Thaala-Mayam-tracklist-releases-by-AR-Rahman-300x172.jpg\")
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\nAccording to Menon, in the black and white era, lighting as a concept was a confused subject, since people were struggling to introduce colour precisely. The light used to bounce into the ceiling and the colours were mostly flat. It called for a fine balance between the soft light and contrast, to make the film look realistic. Shooting indoors used to be a tedious task, given the low light. \u201cBack then, getting a realistic image, whilst making sure it was visually arresting, was\u00a0together of a story, building up continuity and using various amplifying factors to garnish and add value to the final outcome.<\/p>\n
\nBut when out in the wilderness, one gets to observe. \u201cCinematography is a bit of both \u2013 creating and observing. I think the observational aspect of cinematography has its origins in documentaries and photojournalism. For example, you\u2019ve got to be academic enough to think about Varanasi\u2019s history when going on a shoot to Varanasi,\u201d
\nenlightened Menon.<\/p>\n
\nThe structural ideas of composition and the vision needed, is what every aspiring professional should imbibe. \u201cLot of people don\u2019t read anymore. Because they do not read, they do not know how stories are made. You\u2019ve got to be a story-teller, with a unique vision, style and team leading skills. The ability to tap into the best talent and associating with yourself with people better than you; are the qualities required to be a successful director. Having the knowledge about all possibilities like sound, effects, actors and developing syntax of one\u2019s own is the need of the hour. There\u2019s no recipe for success. Things that are relevant today might not be in trend tomorrow. The ability to keep pace with everchanging technologies and fads is especially essential in honing one\u2019s skills. You have to know the difference between the colours – wine and purple,\u201d explained Menon.<\/p>\n
\nOn being asked about his legendary journey, Menon coyly said, \u201cWhen you ask me this, I feel like \u2018Oh God, I have been here for quite some time,\u2019 but I feel like I\u2019m very fresh and always learning. I\u2019ve been in the industry for quite some time, but I still need to figure out a few things. Even now, on the first day of shooting for any new film, I have butterflies in my stomach. The day one loses that excitement, inquisitiveness, competitiveness and winning streak, is the day one should stop shooting.\u201d Just as he loves the sound of an old car engine revving up, which is barely heard
\nin modern times, he stresses on always being in touch with the rawness and essence of cinematography. \u201cJust like there\u2019s a charm in writing love letters, there is always something special about the basic conventional way of
\ndoing things,\u201d smiled Menon.
\nOn asked about how he keeps so fit, so much that he could pass for a 35 year-old, he said he believes in walking and exercising. Another person who plays a pivotal role in his life, is his beloved mother, veteran singer Kalyani Menon. \u201cI\u2019m eternally grateful to my mother for not having emotionally blackmailed me into doing something I didn\u2019t
\nwant to. She\u2019s a great friend, but besides that she is an optimist. She is 76 years old, recently had a fall and hurt herself. But she just finished singing for a new film set to release.
\nShe was so excited about the fact that her song is trending and got 2 million views on Youtube! A woman who is 76, who can barely walk is looking forward to her next song. She always encourages me to do what I truly want to, and this kind of positivity has really rubbed off on me!\u201d exclaimed Menon.
\nLike mother, like son!<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"http:\/\/thesica.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/11\/New-Microsoft-Office-Word-Document-1-225x300.jpg\")
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Glimpse into the life voyage of RAJIV MENON, the legendary cinematographer, focused producer, staunch director, experimenting actor and passionate educator OF BRAWN AND MIGHT\u00a0 BY ANISHA GAKHAR continued from previous article ….Volume :2 CHENNAI AS HIS FORT When asked about why he chose Chennai as his den, Menon explained, \u201cMy formative years were spent here. […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":4652,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[1],"tags":[],"translation":{"provider":"WPGlobus","version":"2.8.1","language":"ta","enabled_languages":["en","ta"],"languages":{"en":{"title":true,"content":true,"excerpt":false},"ta":{"title":false,"content":false,"excerpt":false}}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/thesica.in\/ta\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4649"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/thesica.in\/ta\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/thesica.in\/ta\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thesica.in\/ta\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thesica.in\/ta\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4649"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/thesica.in\/ta\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4649\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4655,"href":"https:\/\/thesica.in\/ta\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4649\/revisions\/4655"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thesica.in\/ta\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4652"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/thesica.in\/ta\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4649"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thesica.in\/ta\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4649"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thesica.in\/ta\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4649"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}