The Master Technician & His Technique

In a career which spanned over six decades, V. Shantaram acquired a considerable reputation as a master director of international class. Further, it was his ability to understand and assimilate the underlying technology of cinema which made him a master of technique. Shantaram’s love for the technology of cinema was inherited from his mentor Baburao Painter but his grasp over film technique was because he witnessed the growth of cinema technology.

His greatest contribution as a director was that he understood the role of the various technicians and blended them into the making of the film. Shantaram had the best technicians working towards the making of the film but he himself was the master technician who could orchestrate his technicians at the mere swing of the baton. One has to have a strong grasp on the grammar and mechanics of cinema to be able to lead a creative team at the height of its creative powers.

Even before he became a film director, Shantaram became India’s first specialist film editor way back in 1918. Noted stage director Pandurang Talegeri, making his film debut, had shot extensively for a historical film which he was unable to put together. The producer, the renowned Marathi litterateur Bhargavram Vitthal "Mama" Warerkar approached Painter for help and he immediately deputed 19-year-old Shantaram. In a matter of months Shantaram had edited and readied Poonyavar Halla aka Poona Raided (1919) was ready.

As a director he was the first to use technology to its fullest extent:
First use of trolley: Chandrasena (1931)
First attempt at colour: Sairandhri (1933)
First original soundtrack disc: Sairandhri (1933)
First use of Telephoto lens (Close up): Amrit Manthan (1934)
First Animation film: Jambukaka (1935)
First use of Back-projection: Amar Jyoti (1936)
First Technicolor film: Jhanak Jhanak Payal Baaje (1955)

He was also the first in other aspects:
First children’s film: Ranisahiba (1930)
First bilingual film: Ayodhya Ka Raja (Hindi) and Ayodhyecha Raja (Marathi) (1932)
First Marathi film: Ayodhyecha Raja (1932)
First trilingual film (Hindi/Marathi/Tamil): Chandrasena (1934)
First Hindi Picture to celebrate Silver Jubilee at a single theatre: Amrit Manthan (1934)
First Silver Jubilee Hindi film: Duniya Na Mane (1937)
First Indian Films to be shown abroad: Shakuntala (1943) and Dr. Kotnis Ki Amar Kahani (1946)
First biographical film on nationalistic subject: Dr. Kotnis Ki Amar Kahani (1946)

Prabhat Film Company was one of the first film companies to use trick scenes as early as the mid 1930s (Sant Tukaram/1936). But the zenith was reached with the sensationally realistic trick scenes of blowing up the dam in Padosi(Hindi)/Shejari(Marathi) (1941) which were created by Prahlad Dutt. The actual scenes were matched to the “dummy” scenes so seamlessly that even today they are a match to the best digital special effects today.

While at Prabhat the company’s senior partner V G Damle had taken over the responsibility of sound recording and V. Shantaram was quite content to concentrate on honing his directorial talent. Later, when he set up Rajkamal Kalamandir he developed a sound recording studio which was the best in India -- thanks to the skill and expertise of its recordists A K Parmar and then, Mangesh Desai.

The sound design of Amar Bhoopali was honoured with the Grand Prix Technique at the Cannes International Festival in 1952.

This emphasis on technology and technique resulted in a new grammar of Indian cinema and thus, a new style of filmmaking. Right from the beginning it was obvious, there was something special about Shantaram the director. He developed a unique visual style that came to be known as the Shantaram Touch. There are many films, which do not carry his name but his stamp is unmistakable.

At the simplest level his editing expertise showed up in his shot division and the manner in which he framed his shots. Composing the frame was a Shantaram speciality and a significant part of the Shantaram touch. Only someone who has the film pre-edited in his own mind can take the shots that Shantaram took for his film.

The Shantaram touch relies heavily on the use of symbolism. Just a few examples from the Hindi/Marathi film Aadmi/Manoos (1937): the multiple caps signify the multi-ethnicity of Shanta Hublikar’s admirers; the prostitute marks a line on the wall to indicate her first meeting with the constable and soon, the lines multiply signifying a growing intimacy. Shantaram had come up with a unique cinematic device with which to sensitively convey the forbidden romance.

The humble title sequence attained heights of creativity in Shantaram’s magical hands. In film after film the title sequence was cleverly constructed to reveal a bit of the film’s theme, thus integrating it into the main text of the film: Gramaphone discs formed the base for the tiles of Duniya Na Mane. Two moving hands were the backdrop for Padosi. Pots of colour flashed the title in Navrang. Dancing feet formed the backdrop for the titles of Jhanak Jhanak Payal Baaje. Stone sculptures formed the backdrop for Geet Gaaya Pathoronne. Anklet bells came together in an animated dance to form the titles of Jal Bin Machchli Nritya Bin Bijli.

Shantaram’s mastery over technology and film technique was leavened by his unerring sense for what would make for good cinema. He was a discerning reader who was also a past master of the art of story-telling. This is borne out not only by the elaboration of his scenes but by his very choice of stories. In an era of the 1920's -30's while everyone in the film industry was concentrating on mythologicals and historicals, he made films with a contemporary comment. He did not write a single screenplay yet, his film scripts bear a unique Shantaram stamp.