I’m a freelance cinematographer and filmmaker. I tell stories through film, and help others tell theirs. I also run a production house for film and video content in Bangalore.
I came to CFL from a “conventional” school at the age of 13, so I had had a taste of mainstream education. At no point during my CFL days did I ever look back and wonder about what could have been. I wholeheartedly embraced the freedom it had to offer, though it took me time to recalibrate. All through my childhood and well into my teens, I struggled with setting goals, expectations and achieving deadlines, despite a lot of support and input from the system. In hindsight, I definitely didn’t overcome these hurdles and patterns during my time in school. What I took away from school were a set of tools that clicked into gear later in life.
I graduated from CFL in 2010, and joined Srishti School of Art Design and Technology without too much of an idea of what I wanted to be. The transition from CFL to a relatively rigid college structure, with grades, peers, competition, and unforgiving deadlines really helped me to put a lot of what I had picked up in school into perspective. The switch wasn’t easy, but I found myself approaching and engaging with my own work differently than I had before. Luckily for me, art and design require heavy amounts of (self indulgent) introspection, communication, questioning motives and downright getting my hands dirty to get anywhere satisfactory.
I always had an interest in photography and film, and it was actively nurtured and developed in school. I was exposed to art, theatre, photography, incredibly diverse people, environments and locations, which broadened my horizons and helped kickstart my art practice.
In Srishti, I majored in film, while experimenting with natural building, product design, animation and user experience in college. I finished art school in 2015, and I’ve been freelancing since.
I’ve had a very eventful and blossoming professional career as a filmmaker. It takes me all over the country to shoot sports, concerts, advertisements, documentaries, short films, corporate films etc. Once in a while I do stop, question and reassess my bearings, to make sure I haven’t lost my voice. It’s a privilege that I recognise and acknowledge, that I know I can afford because of my background. I’d like to believe that my education keeps me somewhat grounded, self-aware and constantly questioning. Although I’m told I deserve a kick once in a while.