Anjuli Shukla is an Indian

cinematographer The cinematographer or director of photography (sometimes shortened to DP or DOP) is the person responsible for the photographing or recording of a film, television production, music video or other live action piece. The cinematographer is the ch ...

and

film director A film director controls a film's artistic and dramatic aspects and visualizes the screenplay (or script) while guiding the film crew and actors in the fulfilment of that vision. The director has a key role in choosing the cast members, p ...

. She is the first and till date the only Indian woman who has won the

National Film Award for Best Cinematography The National Film Award for Best Cinematography is one of the National Film Awards presented annually by the Directorate of Film Festivals, the organisation set up by Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, India. It is one of several awards p ...

. ''

Kutty Srank ''Kutty Srank'' ( en, The Sailor of Hearts) is a 2010 Indian Malayalam arthouse film directed by Shaji N. Karun. Mammootty played the title role for the film. The film was produced by Reliance Entertainment under the banner of Big Motion Pict ...

'', her debut film, won her the

in 2010. Her recent direction, ‘Happy Mothers Day’ a feature film by

Children's Film Society, India Children's Film Society India (CFSI) was a nodal organization of Government of India that produced children's films and various TV programs in various Indian languages. Established in 1955, CFSI functioned under the Ministry of Information and ...

(CFSI) was the opening film for the 19th Edition of the

International Children's Film Festival India (ICFFI) The International Children's Film Festival India (ICFFI), popularly known as the Golden Elephant, was a film festival conducted for seven days November 14th ( Children’s Day) and November 20th every two years which is aimed to bring together ...

. An alumnus of the

Film and Television Institute of India The Film and Television Institute of India (FTII) is a film institute under the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting of the Government of India and aided by the Central Government of India. It is situated on the premises of the erstwhile ...

, Shukla started her career as an assistant to cinematographer and director

Santosh Sivan Santosh Sivan (born 8 February 1964) is an Indian cinematographer, film director, producer and actor known for his works in Malayalam, Tamil and Hindi cinema. Santosh graduated from the Film and Television Institute of India and has to date co ...

before making her feature film debut.

Biography

Shukla was born in

Lucknow Lucknow (, ) is the capital and the largest city of the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh and it is also the second largest urban agglomeration in Uttar Pradesh. Lucknow is the administrative headquarters of the eponymous district and division ...

into a family that was not related to film industry. She was interested in films right from her childhood and completed her graduation from the University of Lucknow, Lucknow. Upon graduation, she decided to join the

(FTII) to do a course in cinematography, which she felt was an ideal platform to express her "creativity". Her family was supportive of her decision. Shukla's diploma film at the FTII was premiered at the competition section of the Camerimage film festival. Upon completing her course at the FTII, she joined

as an apprentice and went on to assist him in various films including two Hollywood productions – ''

The Mistress of Spices ''The Mistress of Spices'' is a 2005 American romantic drama film by Paul Mayeda Berges, with a screenplay by Gurinder Chadha and Berges. It is based upon the 1997 novel '' Mistress of Spices'' by Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni. The film stars Aishwa ...

'' and ''

Before the Rains ''Before the Rains'' is a 2007 Indian-British period drama film directed by Santosh Sivan. The film is adapted from a story from the 2001 anthology Israeli film '' Asphalt Zahov''. It was filmed on location in Kerala, India and was released in ...

''. She was the second unit camerawoman for

Mani Ratnam Gopala Ratnam Subramaniam (born 2 June 1956), known professionally as Mani Ratnam, is an Indian film director, screenwriter, and producer who predominantly works in Tamil cinema and few Hindi, Telugu and Kannada films. Ratnam has won six Nat ...

's Tamil–Hindi bilingual films '' Raavan'' and ''

Raavanan Ravana (; , , ) is a rakshasa king of the island of Lanka, and the chief antagonist of the Hindu epic ''Ramayana'' and its adaptations. In the ''Ramayana'', Ravana is described to be the eldest son of sage Vishrava and Rakshasa, rakshasi Kaik ...

'' (2010). She got a break as an independent cinematographer through ''

'', a

Malayalam film Malayalam cinema is an Indian cinema, Indian film industry of Malayalam-language motion pictures. It is based in Kochi, Kerala, India. The films produced in Malayalam cinema are known for their cinematography and story-driven plots. In 1982, ...

directed by

Shaji N. Karun Shaji Neelakantan Karun (born 1 January 1952) is an Indian film director and cinematographer. His debut film '' Piravi'' (1988) won the Caméra d'Or – Mention d'honneur at the 1989 Cannes Film Festival. He was the premiere chairman of the Keral ...

. The film had the distinction of being the first in Malayalam to be shot by a woman cinematographer. Shukla's work fetched her the Best Cinematography at the

57th National Film Awards The 57th National Film Awards, presented by Directorate of Film Festivals, the organisation set up by Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, India to felicitate the best of Indian Cinema released in the year 2009. Three different committee ...

in 2010. She was the first female to be awarded in the category. After ''Kutty Srank'', she joined with Santosh Sivan for ''

Urumi Urumi (Malayalam: ''uṟumi''; Sinhalese: ''ethunu kaduwa''; Hindi: ''āra'') is a sword with a flexible, whip-like blade, originating in modern-day Kerala in the Indian subcontinent. It is thought to have existed from as early as the Sangam peri ...

'', a period drama.

Filmography

Director

* '' Happy Mother's Day, a feature film by Children’s Film Society India (CFSI)'' (2015)

Cinematographer

* ''

'' (2010)

Camera and Electrical Department or Second Unit Department

* ''

Anandabhadram ''Anandabhadram'' (Anand's Bhadra) is a 2005 Indian Malayalam-language dark fantasy horror film based on the novel of the same name by Sunil Parameshwaran. The film was the debut Malayalam film venture of director Santosh Sivan and actress Riy ...

'' (2005) - Malayalam * '' The Mistress of Spices (film)'' (2005) - Hindi/English * ''

'' (2007) - English /Malayalam * ''

Prarambha ''Prarambha'' (translation: Beginning) is a 2007 Indian short film directed by Santosh Sivan and funded by Bill Gates foundation. The film stars Prabhu Deva, Skandha and B. Saroja Devi in the lead roles. The movie premiered at Toronto Internatio ...

'' (2007)-Kannada * ''

Tahaan ''Tahaan – A Boy With a Grenade'' is an Indian Hindi-language drama film by Santosh Sivan. The film is based on the life of a young boy and his pet donkey. It is a fable-like journey of the eponymous eight-year-old boy, whose life revolves aro ...

'' (2008)-Hindi * '' Raavan'' (2010)-Hindi/Tamil * ''

Urumi (film) ''Urumi'' (also known as ''Urumi: The Warriors Who Wanted to Kill Vasco Da Gama''), is a 2011 Indian Malayalam-language epic historical drama film written by Shankar Ramakrishnan and directed as well as co-produced by Santosh Sivan.

'' (2010)-Malayalam * '' Pehla Sitara'' (delayed)

Awards

National

;

* 2010 - ''

'' (Malayalam) – Best Cinematography

International

Nominated: ;Golden Tadpole for Best Cinematography,

Camerimage The International Film Festival of the Art of Cinematography Camerimage () is a festival dedicated to the celebration of cinematography and recognition of its creators, cinematographers. The first seven events (1993–1999) were held in Toruń, ...

*2004 – Pre-Mortem – Golden Tadpole for Best Cinematography,

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Shukla, Anjuli Indian women film directors Living people Malayalam film cinematographers Best Cinematography National Film Award winners Artists from Lucknow Film and Television Institute of India alumni Indian women cinematographers Women artists from Uttar Pradesh 21st-century Indian film directors 21st-century Indian women artists 21st-century Indian photographers Cinematographers from Uttar Pradesh Year of birth missing (living people)