Shaji N. Karun's Kutty Shranku, starring Mammootty in the lead, is in fact a special treat for Malayalees because of its cinematographer Anjali Shukla, whose name will go down in the history of Malayalam Cinema as the first woman to crank the camera for a Malayalam film.
Rather than riding high on the fact that she is the first woman cameraperson in Malayalam, Anjali Shukla, an alumnus of The Film and Television Institute of India, Pune, considers this present experience as an opportunity to learn from Shaji N. Karun, one of the top cinematographers in India.
“I hope to rise to my director’s expectations and understand and capture his vision of the film,” she said. “I value the present experience as an opportunity to learn from Shaji. For me, more than anything else, it is an opportunity to use my skills, sensibilities and aesthetics in what, I believe, is going to be a landmark film.”
She added that Shaji chose her for the film because he wanted a woman behind the camera to add that feminine perspective to the theme that revolves around the perspectives of three women. The story of Kutty Shranku is woven around three women and their relationships with the protagonist, Kutty Shranku, played by Mammootty.
Anjali started her career with director-cinematographer Santosh Sivan, with whom she did a dozen films, including two Hollywood productions – Before the Rains and Mistress of Spices. Anjali has also worked in two Malayalam films. She had worked with Santosh in Ananthabhadram and with Manoj Pillai in Achanurangatha Veedu.
She points out that it took a lot of introspection to decide on her profession. Why? “Because I come from a non-film background. Even the city Lucknow in which I grew up did not have a film culture or industry like in Kolkata, Mumbai, Chennai or Kerala,” she said. Let's hope Anjali's effort will rise up to the expectations of the illustrious filmmaker. All the best!
To view the Kutty Shranku Photo Gallery, CLICK HERE.
