
Interview: Cinematographer Niketh Bommi on his visual storytelling, from ‘Kuberaa' to ‘35'
'I am not a sucker for large scale and grand visuals. If it happens organically, it's great,' he says. His filmography concurs with that statement. In Telugu, his work includes the thriller Yuddham Sharanam, buddy comedy Ee Nagaraniki Emaindi, family dramas Ante Sundaraniki and 35: Chinna Katha Kaadu. In Tamil, he drew attention with his work in the biopic drama Soorarai Pottru (Aakaasam Nee Haddu Ra in Telugu), and Dragon. The Tamil-Telugu thriller U-Turn, anthologies Pitta Kathalu and Putham Pudhu Kaalai, and Sarfira —the Hindi remake of Soorarai Pottru —are part of his oeuvre.
'It took me three or four films to understand what I really enjoy working on. When I listen to a story or read a script, I look for the emotion it intends to convey. Soorarai Pottru and Kuberaa had a large canvas, but the core emotions appealed to me.'
Niketh is a Telugu who grew up in Chennai. An electronics and communications engineer, he was drawn towards cinematography while making short films with his friends. 'Digital filmmaking was underway and the 5D revolution had begun; it was an interesting space to explore. I used to take a billion images of myself,' Niketh recalls with a laugh.
He joined the Mindscreen Film Institute, founded by ace cinematographer Rajiv Menon. He honed his skills under the tutelage of the dean, MN Gnanasekaran, and other teachers. 'Gnanasekaran sir's approach was simple. He would tell us that as long as we have an image, we are on the right track. It was a confidence booster; a starting point.'
Niketh was more inclined towards corporate films and music videos than cinema. Ee Nagaraniki Emaindi, directed by Tharun Bhascker, which used the immersive experience of sync sound recording, was a turning point. 'Earlier, I had a technical approach towards the craft — where and how to use a long lens, a short lens, or how to add beauty to a frame. Tharun made me develop an emotional connection with the visuals. I developed love towards narrating fiction.'
Niketh also began appreciating the collective experience of theatrical viewing, as opposed to his earlier preference of home viewing. 'I now buy 30-40 tickets and watch my films with friends and family. I remember how everyone enjoyed watching Dragon.'
Niketh firmly believes that a craft shines when it does not distract the audiences from the storytelling, and this is possible when every department works in tandem. Storyboarding and rehearsals are his pre-production essentials, enabling better coordination with the direction, costume and production design departments.
During Soorarai Pottru, extensive planning helped the team film challenging sequences inside an aircraft, train, and on the runway within a short time. For Kuberaa, the storyboards by artiste Nithya, he says, helped in effectively translating director Sekhar Kammula's ideas onto the screen.
Distinct worlds of 'Kuberaa'
Kuberaa warranted the delineation of three worlds — that of the billionaire (Jim Sarbh), the middle class (Nagarjuna), and the oppressed class (Dhanush), Niketh says, 'A lot of planning went into the costumes and the locations, both indoors and outdoors.'
For Jim Sarbh's residence and office, Sekhar Kammula wanted opulent spaces with high ceilings. After recce in Hyderabad, Mumbai, and Dubai, the team identified a hotel in Thailand. 'The interiors of his house, the elevator, and the area where his chopper lands, were all filmed in Thailand. I did not have to do much since the colours were already part of the interiors,' says Niketh.
Production designer Thota Tharani conceptualised a set for Jim Sarbh's office to aesthetically match the house. 'All I wanted was plenty of natural light to stream through the windows,' adds Niketh. The office set was constructed at Annapurna Studios, Hyderabad. Visual effects coordinator Ashok Mocharla, says Niketh, played a crucial role in ensuring that the VFX shots stayed mostly 'invisible'. 'Kuberaa has nearly 1400 VFX shots but many are tough to identify.' There are scenes in which 3D imagery of Mumbai's skyline is integrated into the frames.
'My task was simple. I had to appear on location, use the right lens and capture the emotions,' says Niketh modestly, crediting the costume department that included Kavya Sriram and Poorvaa Jain, among others, and the production design team, for ensuring a palette in synergy with the characters, their economic background, and the situations they are thrown into. He also credits colourist Suresh Ravi, who played a key role in ensuring tonal consistency while tracking colour grading on the edit table. Niketh and Ravi have collaborated for over 10 films.
Nagarjuna's attire, in hues of blue, reflects the character's classy demeanour. 'He is a righteous man caught in a tricky situation but still spells class. He also had to look perennially tired. Somehow he and the team pulled it off; when I looked through the camera, it was all to the point,' says Niketh. Warmer tones were used for both Dhanush and Rashmika.
Niketh describes filming the key sequences in the dumpyard as more 'annoying' than tough. 'It was crazy filming at an actual dumpyard in Mumbai for two to three days. We had permission to clear only a small area, the rest of it was all filth. I don't know how everyone pulled it off. Perhaps it is due to our respect towards Sekhar sir. For days afterwards, our socks would still carry that stench.'
Talking of invisible CG, Niketh reveals that for certain scenes, subtle VFX ensured better emotional portrayals on screen. 'Long after we filmed the Tirupati sequences, when we felt that we could do with a few more close shots to work with on the edit table, we would film the actors against a green mat but Ashok and my associates would travel to get the relevant plates for the shots required. They were integrated seamlessly.'
The soul of '35'
In contrast to Kuberaa, mounted on a budget of over ₹100 crore, was the heartwarming drama 35. Niketh appreciates the conviction in director Nanda Kishore Emani's storytelling, and adds, 'I connected deeply to the mother-son story and I consider it a cute tribute to my own mother. I wanted to be a part of the film as soon as I listened to the story. Nandu had a lovely way of narrating it. From the Tirupati dialect to how he designed Saraswati's (Nivetha Thomas) character, and her bond with her husband — a bus conductor — had elegance and depth. The story centred on the relationships between four or five characters.'
The warm tones in some frames of 35, Niketh explains after considerable thought, stems from what he imbibed while working with director Sudha Kongara during Soorarai Pottru. 'Sudha enjoyed the 6 am shoots. I began to like warm tones on screen thanks to her. We shot several sequences for Soorarai… and Sarfira in the morning hours, using the morning sun and the flares through the windows. That has now become an innate style in some of my films — Ante Sundaraniki, 35, and Dragon and Kuberaa to an extent. In 35, we filmed inside a small house and most of the story takes place during early morning or evening hours when the children and the husband are at home. The sunrise and sunset hours were conducive for the visuals. For a few scenes that required afternoon light, like the scene when Gautami visits Nivetha's home, our lighting replicated an afternoon scenario.' For some of the portions on the terrace, in an area surrounded by trees, the relatively cooler tone was natural as sun rays filtered through the leaves, and the occasional use of tungsten light sources added patches of warmth to the cooler frames.
Niketh particularly mentions the temple scene involving a younger Nivetha Thomas. 'She had to look a decade younger. Ashok gave inputs on how to light specifically such that the actor's features can be worked upon during post production for de-aging. It has been a gradual learning process.'
Next, Niketh is working on Pradeep Ranganathan's Dude.
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


NDTV
22 minutes ago
- NDTV
Rohman Shawl Defines Relationship With Ex-Girlfriend Sushmita Sen: "Not Lovers, Not Strangers..."
New Delhi: Rohman Shawl shared an intriguing Instagram post on Monday on the occasion of completing seven years of his relationship with Sushmita Sen. Rohman and Sushmita are no longer in a relationship but their "quiet" friendship "stayed"; Defining their relationship status, Rohman wrote, "Not lovers, not strangers, something softer, rarer." What's Happening Rohman shared a gray-scale picture in which he's seen leaning over Sushmita Sen. Sushmita is seen posing with her back to the camera. Sushmita is seen wearing a hoodie which has the initial letter of her name S written over it. Refelcting upon their relationship, Rohman wrote, "7 years today. Some stories outgrow their titles, but never their meaning !! "I taught you chess, you now beat me without mercy. "You taught me to swim, dragged a water phobic soul into the deep end (emotionally and literally) And how can I not thank you for giving me the best haircuts. We swapped roles, fears, and strengths, and somewhere between checkmates and deep ends, we found a bond that outlived labels." Rohman shared their bond defies name and titles. "Not lovers, not strangers, something softer, rarer !!! "You were once my safe place & somehow, still are!!!! Grateful for the love we had & the quiet friendship that stayed." The post garnered love from the Internet. A user wrote, "Love in it's purest form, beyond comprehension." Another user wrote, "What an outstanding caption." View this post on Instagram A post shared by rohman shawl (@rohmanshawl) Background Sushmita Sen had confirmed their breakup back in 2021 with an Instagram post. She shared a picture with Rohman and wrote, 'We began as friends, we remain friends!! The relationship was long over…the love remains!!" Since then, Sushmita Sen and Rohman Shawl have often been seen together at events and family gatherings. Menwhile, Rohman Shawl is also exploring new paths in his career. He made his acting debut last year with the Tamil film Amaran. He played the antagonist in the film, and his performance was well-received. On the other hand, Sushmita Sen was last seen in the show, Taali: Bajaungi Nahi, Bajwaungi.


Hindustan Times
22 minutes ago
- Hindustan Times
Kaantha trailer: Dulquer Salmaan, Samuthirakani head a tale of bruised egos between father-son. Watch
Kaantha trailer: The trailer for Selvaraj Selvamani's Dulquer Salmaan and Samuthirakani-starrer Kaantha was released on Monday. Dulquer, who celebrates his birthday today, July 28, and Samuthirakani play son and father in what looks like a retro tale of bruised egos. Kaantha trailer: The Tamil-Telugu bi-lingual is produced by Rana Daggubati and Dulquer Salmaan. Kaantha trailer The trailer for Kaantha begins with a studio announcing a horror film called Saantha, the first horror film being made in Tamil/Telugu. Set in 1950s Madras, Samuthirakani is shown as the director of the film, fondly called Ayya by everyone, who doesn't seem happy about the film's cast. Leading the film is his son, a superstar who was trained all his life by his father to be in films, and yet, something has gone wrong between them. Even as Dulquer tells a co-star that no one respects Ayya more than him, the feelings don't seem reciprocated. Ayya is quick to choke his son and throw chairs at him. But after he decides to make the female actor, played by Bhagyashri Borse, both the 'hero and heroine', Dulquer seems at wits' end, deciding to hit back. He even tells the studio that the film will now be called Kaantha, not Saantha. The trailer ends by hinting at a war of ego between father and son. The internet thought the trailer of Kaantha was 'superb' if reactions on X (formerly Twitter) and YouTube are anything to go by. 'Big fan of your gemini ganeshan role in Mahanati. Now this one also giving same vibes. Can't wait to experience this on screen,' commented one fan. 'more than expected. seems another banger loading,' wrote another. One person thought Kaantha was a 'sureshot hit' while a few others praised Dulquer for his script selection. About Kaantha Kaantha is written and directed by Selvaraj Selvamani and stars Dulquer, Samuthirakani and Bhagyashri as the leads. Jhanu Chanthar composed the music for the film, which will be released in theatres on 12 September. Rana Daggubati, Dulquer Salmaan, Prashanth Potluri and Jom Varghese produce the film under Spirit Media and Wayfarer Films.


Time of India
an hour ago
- Time of India
'Maargan' now available on OTT: When and where to stream hit Tamil supernatural thriller?
The supernatural crime thriller Maargan, featuring Vijay Antony in the lead role, has now found its way to digital screens. The film, which originally premiered in cinemas on June 27, 2025, is officially available for streaming on Amazon Prime Video starting July 25. The announcement was made by the film's own production company, Vijay Antony Film Corporation , through their verified social media handles, creating a buzz among the actor's followers and thriller fans by director Leo John Paul, Maargan explores an eerie criminal investigation wrapped in supernatural undertones. Alongside Vijay Antony, the movie includes key performances by Ajay Dhishan and P. Samuthirakani. Following its theatrical release, the movie garnered a warm reception in both Tamil and Telugu territories. Notably, Vijay Antony expressed gratitude towards the Telugu audience and extended his appreciation to veterans in the Telugu film industry for their generous support in ensuring a widespread storyline of Maargan delves into a series of mysterious killings targeting women. The victims are attacked using an unidentified serum that causes their skin to darken unnaturally. Assigned to lead the case is senior police official Dhruv, portrayed by Vijay Antony, who initially suspects a man named Aravind, played by Ajay Dhishan. However, as the investigation deepens, Dhruv encounters unexpected revelations that take the plot into darker, more complex territory. The movie stood out for its compelling genre blend and a cleverly structured narrative that maintained suspense film's production was overseen by Fatima Vijay Antony, with Vijay himself also composing the background score, adding a personal creative touch to the project. Maargan was lauded for its eerie atmosphere, intriguing plot, and strong performances, particularly that of Vijay Antony, who carried the film with it wasn't a record-breaking hit, Maargan managed to perform decently at the box office, collecting approximately ₹14 crore during its run, according to Sacnilk. With its arrival on Prime Video, the film is now poised to reach a broader audience looking for an immersive thriller experience.