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| Gautam Menon and Manoj paramahamsa on the sets of Yem Maya Chesavo |
Cameraman Manoj Paramahamsa shot to fame with the recent Gowtham Menon's film Ye Maaya Chesave. The film was made simultaneously in Telugu and Tamil (as Vinnai Thaandi Varuvaya. The film got good reviews and everyone praised the excellent camerawork in the film. I called Gowtham Menon to find out more about the cinematographer, got his number from Gowtham, and I called Manoj to set an appointment for the interview. We agreed to talk the next day and excerpts of our telephonic conversation are presented here as an exclusive chitchat for TC.Com readers.
Sri: Your name is different...
Manoj: (Laughs) My father is an ardent fan of hero Manoj Kumar of Hindi films and also likes Ramakrishna Paramahamsa's preachings. You now understand...
Sri: Tell me about your background.
Manoj: I was born and brought up in Chennai but we belong to Andhra Pradesh. My father was born in Kandukuru and studied there. He came to Madras upon completing his studies with the help of film director Gopala Krishna of Veera Pooja. Gopala Krishna gaaru joined him in the Film Institute and later as an assistant to Mr. V.N. Reddy gaaru. My father later worked under directors like Bheem Singh and a few others as an assistant and later turned a director himself. As a director, my father made six films in all, in Telugu, Tamil, and Malayalam.
Sri: It's interesting to know that your dad was a director too. What was his name? What films did he direct?
Manoj: U.V. Babu is the name. He directed the film Pagadala Padava (1980) with the now-popular director S.V. Krishna Reddy as hero (with screen name "Kalyan") and Pallavi as the herione. The film had a limited release and was a flop; it was also the debut film for ace cameraman Kannan (who was a permanent cameraman for veteran director Bharati Raja). My dad then made a film titled Santhi Nivasam with Chiranjeevi and Madhavi in the lead. Th film completed all shooting except for two songs, the audio was released too, but the exposed film rolls were misplaced at Sharada Studios before going to the censor - the studio was shifting its location and thus there was commotion all over - we never found the reels until now and thus that film never saw light! He later did a film called Swatantraaniki Oopiri Poyandi (1987) with Chandramohan and Silk Smitha in the lead. This film was appreciated by critics and was an average fare at the box-office. He then made Vasudha (1992) in Malayalam, starring Saikumar, Maniyanpilla Raju, Rajan P. Dev, Ravi, Charu Hasan, Rekha, Kanaka, Smitha and others. He later made a film called Bandaru Picchodu with yesteryears' handsome hero Haranath's cousin Subbaraju and Krishnaveni, which also ended up as an average flick. He later made some documentaries and telefilms too. That way, I was connected to films even before I was born (laughs). I used to attend shootings even when I was a kid. After school, I used to go directly to studios and see how films were made. Also my paternal uncle is also a cameraman, and he works in Doordarshan now.
Sri: So, did you also pursue any course in the Film Institute like your father ?
Manoj: Indeed, I completed cinematography course in Madras Film Institute. Arivazhagan Venkatachalam, who made the Tamil film Eeram (starring Raviraja Pinisetti's son Aadi and Chandamama fame Sindhu Menon in the lead), was my classmate in the Institute.
