When looking at the works of cinematographer Mukesh G, which include predominantly Telugu films like The Ghost, Nela Ticket, Paisa Vasool, one might presume that the man is not from Tamil Nadu. After spending many years in the Telugu film industry, Mukesh returned to Tamil cinema for his old friend and director Arun Matheswaran’s latest, DC. In this exclusive conversation with CE, Mukesh talks about working with his college friend, using music as a reference for filmmaking, and his opinions on AI in cinema.
Excerpts:
Though you are a Tamilian, you have mainly worked in Telugu films. How did that come to happen?
I did not plan to establish a career in the Telugu industry. After I worked on one Telugu film, someone from Puri Jagannadh's team showed him my work, and I got a call for a film. I was able to match his speed, so he offered work on two more films. The opportunities in Telugu just continued. But due to scheduling issues, I missed out on Tamil projects like Oh My Kadavule (2020).
Taking up DC was to change the image that I am from AP/Telangana. I have family here, and I was missing them and my kids so much. So I wanted to do a Tamil project for them too.
What prompted you to take up cinematography as a profession?
After watching Kadhal Desam (1996), I remember thinking that something was different with its look, but I wasn't able to describe it in words. But I watched that three times and got inspired to choose cinematography as a career. After which I joined the team of cinematographer PS Vinod, who has worked on Aaranya Kaandam (2010). Though Arun worked on Aaranya Kaandam, I knew him from college. I was supposed to work with him since his first film. But it was only with DC that both of us stood strongly on wanting to work with each other.
DC was very fast-paced, with music also playing a huge factor. How were the decisions on filming this made?
After the script was locked in, both Arun and I decided on making DC visually stand out from Arun's other films. We decided to predominantly use hand-held shots.
In that final sequence with the shootout, we used some high-speed shots with the bomb hurling sequence. We knew that Anirudh would score something great here. So if I have to give the music director some scope for substance, we need to use high-speed shots. Music was the base of how DC was shot.
Could you talk about the use of red in the film?
A lot of red in the film came from two things, one was the van and the other was the plastic rose. So the brothel sequence, which was shot first, included a lot of red with a glossy finish, which resulted in the place looking dingy, but for the camera we got the leading lines we wanted. So working with this red, the costumes were decided to have muted colours, and every other set complimenting this red tone.
But this also resulted in visual storytelling. In the beginning of the film scenes with Sanjana where filming in a lodge, predominantly blue in colour, resulted in a stark contrast. We worked with that to show the stark shift in Devadas' story when Chandra (Wamiqa Gabbi) came in, after which the red tone intensified.
But this red tone is also maintained throughout, because Arun is very particular with the colour palette. Even if there is a random dustbin, of a different colour, somewhere distant in the background, Arun will cut immediately and will want to continue only with that object removed.
What were your favourite shots from DC?
We do a lot of things for beautiful compositions, like the shots with the sun and moon, and I had fun with those. But for me, there was one shot where Chandra turns and looks intensely at Devadas when he asks her about where she was from. That shot had a lot of meaning to it in terms of storytelling. Lokesh's agility in shots where he draws a sword also resulted in interesting moments that I really liked.
Do you think the latest trend of desaturated shots will be the future of how a film looks?
It really does depend on the film. There are a lot of Western influences, and due to that we see a lot of desaturated colour palette and muted tones. But that won't be the standard of the future, as we come from a land of colours, and a land which celebrates music. But an opinion I object to is that stories cannot be told with songs. Music is the major strength for a film. So if someone says this to me, it means that they haven't experimented with songs. The writing for a film should also include space for music, as I feel that this will help with a break from drama, and even lag sometimes. So when I hear a story with songs, I get excited because we use a lot of colours and tell it in a very interesting manner.
What do you think about the onset of AI?
If you had asked me last year, I wouldn't have said that AI is a threat. But with what AI tools can do now, I would say it is very inevitable. In 2027, there will be a complete film with AI. But the threat for jobs will set in more when an AI artist is regarded in equal standing like a star. So be it an amateur or a veteran, everyone should learn AI, as including some AI shots can be termed as organic filmmaking in the future.
What are you working on next?
With DC I feel a new responsibility has set in for how my work should be, as I feel some expectations have set in. I have listened to 3-4 stories and I have also asked for some time before I say yes, so within the next 10-15 days my next film will be announced.