Of Acrylics and Aesthetics 

The parallels between painting and photography hit home for cinematographer Gnana Shekar VS, who also moonlights as an artist. Working primarily with acrylic paints, charcoal and sometimes with oil, the cinematographer admits that as much as he likes oil, he does not get the time to dabble with it as often as he would like to, given his commitments in the world of cinema. After shooting shorts and documentaries that hit the indie film circuit, Gnana Shekar steadily made inroads into the world of feature filmmaking. He is known for his multiple collaborations with directors both experienced (Krish Jagarlamudi) as well as up-and-coming (Sankalp Reddy) filmmakers. Speaking about how his stint in the world of art makes its presence felt in the world of filmmaking, Gnana Shekar says, “Lighting is a key aspect for most cinematographers, but it is framing that I give most precedence to, thanks to my background in photography’s more prescient and enduring format. I place my camera like a canvas, capturing the colours in front of me, in its appropriate level of intensity.” 

With a career that has had multiple period films (Gautamiputra Satakarni, Kanche, Manikarnika, NTR : Kathanayakudu) Gnana Shekar does have a special fondness for the same. Speaking about his approach towards shooting period films, he says, “Aesthetics play a much bigger role whilst shooting period films, as opposed to films that are set in our times. That said, it is never merely about displaying aesthetics for the sake of it, but also about ensuring the lofty artistic goals are effectively translated through careful worldbuilding. One must also know how to utilise and work around elements.” Illustrating his theory with an example, Gnana Shekar replies, “In my recent film IB71, we had to shoot the film in Kashmir. Now since the film is set in the 20th century and dealt with themes of suspicion, espionage, and a high-stakes hijack, I cannot shoot Kashmir like a tourist ad. In order to understand and manipulate the elements to our benefit, we had to do multiple recces, study its weather conditions and the way the sun travels around that area. You are required to not fill light but work around to get the right feel. Shooting in the snow has its own set of challenges. When you try to film snow, its colour temperature is on the much higher wavelength, which needs to be balanced with warm lights, otherwise you will need to see the film with UV glasses.” 

Shedding light on the lesser-known process of colour grading in cinematography, Gnana Shekar says, “You cannot rely on them entirely. One can only enhance what is already done well during the shoot. After my shoot gets over, I really like to take photos from that day from our still photography, go to the hotel room and grade the pictures myself. These pictures, in turn, come in handy as a reference point for the DI team during post-production.” 

Gnana Shekar is working next on one of Telugu film industry’s most high-profile films, Pawan Kalyan’s Hari Hara Veera Maalu. While he is a period film veteran, the challenge this film provided is quite ironic. “HHVM is Pawan Kalyan’s first period film. What I had to look out for specifically is how this beloved star looks on screen, in a totally different avatar. The focus was on portraying him with the right colours and lighting.” The cinematographer is also working on the upcoming films of Deva Katta and Srujana Rao, who made her directorial debut with the 2021 survival-based anthology film Gamanam. Closing the interview with how quality means more than quantity in his filmography, Gnana Shekar signs off, saying, “I love working with young directors and fresh ideas. It is ideas and novel concepts that really draw me into a film, and I am glad my filmography, albeit smaller, is a decent reflection of the ideas I have personally loved over the years.”