Gautam Rajadhyaksha, who passed away in Mumbai on Tuesday, was an accidental photographer. For a man who started his career as a lecturer in chemistry, and then went on to become one of the most celebrated photographers of our time, Gautam's love affair with the camera could well be described as a guilty passion. But once he was up and running, after a stint at Lintas, Gautam rapidly established himself as The Chosen One. From Rekha to Amitabh Bachchan, from J.R.D.Tata to Sachin Tendulkar, he captured them all. And did so with such simplicity and elegance.
This was really his signature – the uncomplicated, divinely lit, perfectly framed portrait that went beyond a mere “pretty picture” and managed to steal an elusive aspect of his subject's personality. Astonished editors would often wonder what it was about Gautam… what was Gautam's ‘jadoo'? How come he made everybody look so damned gorgeous? The truth is, there was nothing more complicated behind his artistry than enormous sensitivity and high intelligence.
Gautam instinctively decoded his subjects. He was the quintessential people person. To be in his warm and homely studio was to feel you were at home – and indeed his studio was also his home. Most professional photographers treat their subjects as objects. Like it is a job that has to be done, and done quickly. But Gautam gave each and every person in front of his lens the same level of leisurely attention and utmost respect. He'd be the reassuring uncle with a nervous model, and a firm grandpa with a child artist. And when it came to movie stars, Gautam would switch between a fastidious school teacher demanding good grades to a conspiratorial best friend, relaxing everybody in the studio with dollops of harmless gossip.
This ability to disarm even the high and mighty led to some brilliant photo shoots which caught the celebrity off guard. And yet, these were not candid shots. These were carefully calibrated images, which Gautam had visualised inside his head much before the celebrity's arrival.
We were close. Gautam was a confidante and friend before he was a cousin. I had pushed him into a career in photography at a time when he was a little diffident about his ability to make it in a fairly competitive and uncertain profession. We would both laugh about our middle class hang-ups and insecurities. Appreciation was very important to him and he valued feedback from those whose opinions counted. His scholarship and knowledge remain unparalleled in the world of Indian photography. Watching the new breed of what he termed, “digital photographers,” he'd analyse gimmicky, stylised images in the glossies and immediately point out the technical flaws. And yet, there was zero resentment. If anything, Gautam had grown into a benign father figure who willingly extended support and help to anybody who approached him.
As the Guru of Portraiture, Gautam has no equal. It's such a pity he passed away three days before a very significant date — he was to turn 61 on the 16th of September, and the occasion was to be marked by the opening of the Faculty of Photography at Symbiosis, Pune. He had been working tirelessly for the past two years on setting up this ambitious project. It was a dream that remained unfulfilled for a man who made the dreams of countless people come true when he turned them into stars through the magic of his lens.
( Shobhaa De is a writer )
