Anil Mehta Height, Age, Family, Biography & More

Some Lesser Known Facts About Anil Mehta

• Anil Mehta is an Indian cinematographer, writer, and director who is known for his cinematography in Bollywood films like Hum Dil de Chuke Sanam, Kal Ho Naa Ho, Lagaan, Veer Zaara, Rockstar, Jab Tak Hai Jaan, and Ae Dil Hai Mushkil. He is one of the founders of the Indian Society of Cinematographers, formed in 1995.

• He was born in a middle-class family and lived in various cities i.e. Calcutta, Hyderabad, Gwalior, and Delhi while growing up.

• He decided to pursue a career in the film industry after watching the American film The Sound of Music released in 1965.

• After completing his graduation from the Film and Television Institute of India (FTII), Pune, he moved to Mumbai and started working in advertisements. While studying at FTII, he studied the work of the Indian cinematographer Subrata Mitra who worked with the cinematographer V K Murthy and the Oscar-winning director Satyajit Ray. In an interview, he said that although the style of work of Satyajit Ray and V K Murthy was almost opposite to each other, he took inspiration from both. ^[3]Film Companion

•  He worked under the producer Chandita Mukherjee and faced several challenges during his initial years. After struggling for 5-6 years, he worked on the short film The Cloud Door by Mani Kaul in 1994.

• He got his first major project in 1994 when Sanjay Leela Bhansali offered him to work on the film Khamoshi: The Musical movie starring Salman Khan. He talked about his meeting with Bhansali when he was offered the script and said,
  

  I had just about gotten comfortable when Sanjay approached me for Khamoshi. He left the script with me and said he had found himself a financier, that he was going to make this film. ‘See if you want to do it,’ he told me. The very next day I called him up and decided to do it.” ^[4]Rediff.com

• He founded The Indian Society of Cinematographers (ISC) along with several other reputed cinematographers in Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala in 1995. His name shows with the suffix ISC in movie credits as he is a member of society.

• In 1999, he worked on the film Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam directed by Sanjay Leela Bhansali and starred Salman Khan, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, and Ajay Devgn. His work was appreciated by the critics, and the shots of the film were liked by fans.

• In 2001, he worked on the film Lagaan directed by Ashutosh Gowariker and starred Aamir Khan and Gracy Singh. In an interview, he gave the details about how he got the film and said,
  

  I met Ashutosh [Gowariker] and Aamir [Khan] long before Hum Dil was released. I think we were still in post-production when Aamir asked me to read the script and speak to Ashu. With Aamir, I got a sense of how he wanted to shoot the film. It was clear that this would be strikingly different from the kind of films being made at the time. Also, with Aamir as a producer, I could sense a commitment to the film. Back then things were not as professional as they are now, but Aamir knew what he was talking about, and that gives you confidence.” ^[5]Rediff.com

  

  Anil Mehta in the late 2000s

• He later worked in many films including Kal Ho Naa Ho in 2003, Veer-Zaara in 2004 (both starred Shah Rukh Khan), Wake Up Sid starring Ranbir Kapoor in 2009, Rockstar in 2011, Jab Tak Hai Jaan in 2012, Highway starring Alia Bhatt in 2014, Badlapur starring Varun Dhawan, Ae Dil Hai Mushkil starring Ranbir Kapoor, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, and Anushka Sharma and directed by Karan Johar in 2015, Secret Superstar starring Aamir Khan in 2017, Angrezi Medium starring late actor Irrfan Khan in 2019, Sandeep Aur Pinky Faraar starring Arjun Kapoor and Parineeti Chopra in 2021, Jersey starring Shahid Kapoor in 2022,  and Darlings starring Alia Bhatt in 2022.
  

  Anil Mehta (right) working with Ranbir Kapoor in the film Ae Dil Hai Mushkil

• In 2002, he wrote the story for the film Agni Varsha starring Amitabh Bachchan and Jackie Shroff in lead roles.

• In 2007, he made his debut as a director with the film Aaja Nachle, the comeback film of Madhuri Dixit Nene. In an interview, he said that it started out as a casual idea and said,
  

  It has been very exhausting. We are at the finishing stages. It’s been quite tiring. The first print just came out. The entire schedule was quite packed. It was not as if I was gunning to be a director. It was Adi’s (Aditya Chopra) idea. He has written the story. It all started as a casual chat while shooting Veer Zaara. The script appealed to me. After this I may or may not direct again.” ^[6]Bolly Spice

• Ace cinematographer Piyush Puty regarded Mehta’s work in Lagaan as one of the inspirations for technical aspects of filmmaking. He later worked with Anil as part of the crew of the movie Wake Up Sid. ^[7]Life And More web portal

• He described patience and active listening as two of the key traits of a good cinematographer and said,
  

  To be able to listen before he can see. In the sense to be able to absorb what is being said, done, or performed. All these have to be absorbed before you translate it. I would say the quality is to be patient, to listen in, and to try and translate that into some kind of visual design.” ^[8]The Hindu