We recently connected with Aakash Raj and have shared our conversation below.
Aakash, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Did you always know you wanted to pursue a creative or artistic career? When did you first know?
In a family of artists, my creative journey unfolded. Guided by the melodic voices and graceful movements of my mother and grandmother, both revered Indian classical singers and dancers, I discovered the power of art. As a child, I sketched Indian mythological gods and goddesses, nurturing my innate connection to the visual medium. When film editing crossed my path, it revealed the door to cinematography, a natural fit that felt as if the divine whispered its secrets in my ear.
Aakash, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?
For the past 12 years, I have had the privilege of working as a cinematographer. Throughout my journey, I have been fortunate to engage in both narrative projects and commercials, two realms of filmmaking that I deeply appreciate and find joy in creating.
In 2016, I had the opportunity to showcase my skills as a cinematographer in my first feature film, “Three and a Half.” It was a significant moment in my career when the film caught the attention of Netflix, which acquired the global distribution rights. The recognition continued as “Three and a Half” earned me the prestigious Dadasaheb Phalke Award for Best Cinematography at The Dada Saheb Phalke Film Festival.
Alongside my involvement in feature films available on popular streaming platforms like Amazon Prime and Hotstar, I also dedicated my talents to various advertising projects. One notable campaign was the Bajaj V invincible Indians commercial, which made history by winning the first Cannes Gold for creative effectiveness awarded to an Indian brand, courtesy of Leo Burnett. Additionally, my work on advertisements for Smoking Joe Pizza, Air Asia, and the Jio IPL, a momentous event with an audience of 500 million viewers akin to the Super Bowl, garnered recognition.
Eager to expand my storytelling horizons and engage in diverse global projects, I pursued further education at the AFI (American Film Institute). It was there that I had the privilege of graduating as a cinematography fellow in 2019. My thesis film, “Vincent,” and visual essay, “Stalls,” received accolades including the Best Cinematography Award at the Genre Celebration Film Festival and the Pride Film Festival, respectively.
In 2020, my recent short film, “Arabian Alien,” made its debut at the Sundance Film Festival, subsequently being screened at the Palm Springs Film Festival. The film went on to win accolades at the Atlanta Film Festival and was even considered for the Oscars in the same year. Shortly after, I had the opportunity to work on a TV pilot titled “My Human Experience,” which earned me the Best Cinematography Award at the Oniros Film Awards and the Best Shorts Competition.
One of my notable achievements thus far has been my feature film, “Four Samosas,” which premiered at the prestigious Tribeca Film Festival in 2022. The film also graced the screens at TIFF, Raindance, and the Tasveer Film Festival. Shot entirely using a single 14mm lens, “Four Samosas” captured the attention of audiences and critics alike, ultimately winning the Newport Beach Film Festival. The film was subsequently acquired by IFC for a theatrical release in North America and is currently available for streaming on AMC+.
Continuing the momentum, I recently completed work on the film “Katie’s Mom,” which premiered at the Dances with Film Festival in 2023, where it received the esteemed Best Feature Audience Award. Presently, I am immersed in various projects, including my involvement in a Canadian TV show called “The Taylor Files,” consisting of 30 episodes. Additionally, I am collaborating on the feature film “Maya,” and “Paper Flowers” is currently in the post-production phase.
What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?
One of the most rewarding aspects of being an artist and creative is the sense of satisfaction derived from recreating spaces and crafting lighting from scratch. The ability to transform a blank canvas into a vibrant and dynamic visual world is incredibly fulfilling. The process of bringing ideas to life, breathing existence into concepts, and witnessing the final result is truly exhilarating. The power to evoke emotions, captivate audiences, and leave a lasting impact through the medium of art is a source of constant excitement and motivation.
How about pivoting – can you share the story of a time you’ve had to pivot?
There is one event that comes to mind as vital. Strangely it would appear as a rather mundane event, to an outsider.
I was very much influenced by one of our professor Mr. Prabodh Parikh who is a writer and a philosopher. He once quoted Lao Tzu – ‘if you look to others for fulfillment, you will never be fulfilled. If your happiness depends upon money, you will never be happy with yourself. Be content with what you have; rejoice in the way things are. When you realize there is nothing lacking, the world belongs to you’. He spoke about the meaning of living a fruitful life. He explained to us how happiness couldn’t be traveled to, owned, earned, worn or consumed. Happiness is the spiritual experience of living every minute with love, grace and gratitude. Although I loved listening to what he said and agreed with him, I just could not follow and practice these values in my personal life. My aim was to stay focused and prioritize my work. As a very hard working student I was striving too hard toward my goals, without living the present moment wisely and earnestly. I was always worried about the future and found it really difficult to follow what professor Parikh taught us. I was so caught up in my daily grind that I did not find any time to enjoy myself and be happy. I was part of this rat race of being successful. I completely disconnected myself from my family and friends. I missed out on a lot of important events, as I kept myself occupied with work. Even though I loved what I was doing, I could not calculate what I was missing out in life at that time.
This one-day we were shooting in a remote village, which functions without electricity and does not have any direct water supply. It was the middle of summer, and the heat was at its peak. I decided to sit under a shade at this run down isolated bus stop, a little far away from the crew, just to relax during the break. After a while of looking around I noticed a woman in her late twenty’s carrying two pots filled with water on her head wearing an old white traditional sari which was now faded, walking under the harsh sunlight, followed by her 7-9 year old child in her half torn and dirty school uniform. The mother’s outfit confirmed that she is a widow. It seemed that the mother had picked her daughter from the school while bringing the filled up water pots back to the house. The child seemed excited and kept on talking all the while without a break. They took a halt at a tea stall a little away from the bus stop, as the child insisted on stopping. Even though the tea stall was a little further away from the bus stop the view from where I was seated, was quite clear. It felt like the mother already knew that this is the place where she has to stop as a norm, because her child always stops there to buy a biscuit {cookie}. The shop owner also knew what they wanted, as he immediately opened up a glass jar filled with cookies and took out one for her. The child grabbed the cookie and started eating it without with rapt attention. After a while she realized she had to pay the shopkeeper. The child removed a coin from her small pocket and handed it over to the shopkeeper. Looking at this, her mother realized that it’s not enough money and removed some more coins that were tied in a knot at the edge of her sari and handed them over to him. The child took the last bite of the cookie and looked up at her mother with a kind of happiness that would make anyone’s day. The mother smiled back at her and they resumed their walk again.
As they walked past the bus stop where I was sitting, I could feel the happiness and joy they had just experienced and I was lucky enough to share it with them. I felt happy and realized how intelligent they are to find joy in such small things in life. It was the first time I encountered the idea of being content in whatever you have and being happy with that, putting aside all problems. It was clear that they were poor and must be facing a lot of problems. The mother had to walk miles each day to get water for the family and the fact that they could not even afford to buy a new school uniform revealed their economical and social condition. Despite this, both the mother and the daughter manage to stay happy. They appreciate whatever little they have and live every moment to it’s fullest. This incident connected directly to all those lovely philosophical quotes by professor Parikh and it became clearer to me as to how one may follow such values in life. This event proved to be a real life example of what professor Parikh was trying to explain. It allowed these values and ideas to sink into my being, so that I could bring them into my daily life.
The simplicity in their life affected the way I look at things. I started appreciating things I have and what I have achieved. It altered my perspective and made me more positive. It encouraged me to live a simple life. I was striving too hard for success However success had to be redefined, and I realized that success was not possible without living to the fullest in the present moment. I understood that success doesn’t bring happiness and creativity. But happiness and creativity bring success. I am determined to be cheerful and happy in whatever situation I may find myself, as true happiness is to enjoy the present, without anxious dependence upon the future. This attitude has given me the strength to face bigger problems, causing me to deal with the most difficult situation with greater ease. Being happy and satisfied in whatever little you have is the key to a successful life, as one’s needs and the wants are never ending. This does not mean that one must not strive toward greater achievement, but that one must enjoy the process. This incident helped me to strive toward becoming an artist rather than just a technician. My interest in art has always made me scared. As much as I wanted to make it a career, all this while I was wrestling with the biggest question of all- what could art do? Could it cut through the white noise of daily life, connect us with the basic emotion that makes us human?
The secret of health for both mind and body is not to mourn for the past, worry about the future, or anticipate troubles, but to live in the present moment wisely and earnestly. – Buddha.
Contact Info:
- Website: [email protected]
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Image Credits
Arabian Alien Poster Katies Mom Poster Emotae Screenshot Lacoste Three and a half