As the cinematographer behind films as diverse as the period Hey Ram and the futuristic Krrish 3, Tirru has had the distinction of working in films of all genres. And now, with the addition of Karthik Subbaraj’s silent movie Mercury to his filmography, Tirru feels that he’s glad he didn’t get pigeon-holed into being a cinematographer of a particular kind. In his Besant Nagar office, on a sultry afternoon, the award winner opens up.
Karthik Subbaraj is known to work with cinematographers who are starting out in their careers. His decision to work with someone as experienced as you for Mercury seemed an interesting choice...
‘Why me?’That’s the first thing I asked Karthik when he called me up. But it’s that very same experience that he wanted while working on such an out-of-the-box film. He said it was a film about four protagonists who are both hearing and speech impaired and that he wanted someone who can communicatethrough the visuals. He wanted my inputs to execute this idea but he never said it was going to be a silent film.
Was it a film that required your extensive involvement in the pre-production stages?
There was nearly three months of pre production that went in from my side. Usually, in horror films, there’s a tendency to play with darkness, with the action revolving around a single light source, like a lamp or a candle. Since we didn’t have dialogues as an added communication tool, I felt that it would be a handicap for our film if we made it dark. So we needed the power of the visuals and the ambience to keep the audience in place.
Was it restricting to shoot a film that is predominantly set inside a factory?
We chose to light up the entire factory in such a way that we hardly needed additional lights for any shot inside. When Karthik and I visited the location during our recce, it was a full moon night and we walked around the factory without using torches. It was dark but there was just enough light for us to be able to move around. But that wasn’t going to be enough for the camera. I wanted the film to look like what we were seeing . Even the idea for the proposal scene, with the shadows appearing on clouds, were based on what we saw that night.
Were the green-tinged visuals of the film, to signify the colour of mercury, planned during this stage?
Yes.In older factories, you will notice that the roofs were made of translucent sheets that would pass through a greenish tinge on moonlit nights. Even for shots outside the factory, I felt that moonlight wasn’t exactly a shade of blue like we had often seen in our films. It’s a mixture of blue and green and I wanted to focus more on that greenish shade.
There are also several unusual camera angles that have been used in the film.
Do you often get the opportunity to work extensively on pre-production of a film?
It’s a lot better now, compared to say 10 years ago. Planning was always a part of our films even during the black and white era. Actors needed to remember their lines because we recorded the sound live. Film too was expensive so we rehearsed and planned more. But with high sensitivity films, dubbing and shooting in digital, we all became lazy.
You’ve worked in several films with Priyadarshan (10 films) and Kamal Haasan (four films). Even though their signatures are evident in the visuals of their films, yours is not. Shouldn’t cinematographers have their own style?
No, they shouldn’t. Each story demands its own style. Cinematography is a communication tool and I’m just trying to translate the story from paper to screen. Each story has its own way of telling, but if you have your own style, it will come in the way.
So, if someone watched your film and commented that they knew that it was your work, right from the beginning, how would you feel?
I will feel bad about it. I must have repeated something then.
