N.L. Balakrishnan's photos were out of the world

photographer and film actor N.L.Balakrishnan

N.L. Balakrishnan’s true talent lay not in front of the camera, but behind it. Behind the still camera, that is. He was the still photographer of more than 170 films. Among them were classics such as Swayamvaram , Chidambaram , Oridathoru Phayalwan and Panchavadipalam .

He was the first to take still pictures while the film was being shot. The practice till then was to pose after the scenes were shot by the movie camera.

“He was also the first one to take a picture without using the flash, and that made his stills natural,” said veteran photographer R. Gopalakrishnan. “He also showed that better pictures could be taken using the 35mm camera, instead of the 120mm, which had been in vogue earlier.”

“Some of the photographs he took were out of the world, such as the ones he took for

Thampu , Chidambaram and Swayamavaram. ”

Mr. Balakrishnan, who made his debut with Kallichellamma after studying painting at the College of Fine Arts (Thiruvananthapuram) , loved to work with talented directors. He was the still photographer of 11 films directed by G. Aravindan. He also worked with the likes of Adoor Gopalakrishnan, M.T. Vasudevan Nair, Bharathan, Padmarajan, K.G. George, K.P. Kumaran, and Lenin Rajendran.

His talent as an actor was spotted by director Rajeev Anchal. “I had known him since the days of working with Aravindan for

Oridath. When I turned an independent director with a children’s film

Ammanam Kili, I decided to cast him as a gypsy who sold birds,” he said. “It was a main role in the film and he did a fine job.”