Popular photographer, ‘Monalisa’ Ramamani, died yesterday. According to reports, he had been suffering from dementia, and spent the last few months of his time ‘asleep’.
@ikamalhaasan : I am Ram – Son-in-law of MonaLisa Ramamani. Letting you know he is in deep dementia for the last 4 mths asleep but alive.
— Ram N Ramakrishnan (@notify_ram) April 22, 2016
Ramamani shot to fame with his work on the National Award winning film, Chemmeen. He left a full-time job to concentrate on his passion – photography. “I was first spotted for Chemmeen, my first film as a still photographer, at which point I was already working as a full-time salaried employee in a multinational company. The experience was challenging and beckoning enough to pursue as a career. I knew, I was made for it and decided to go ahead,” he had said in an interview with The New Indian Express.
Following the success of Chemmeen, he became an established name in the Malayalam Film Industry. He went on to work in about 100 films. “What polished my skills was a 10-day workshop during my visit to Canada with Yousuf Karsh, the worldfamous photographer, who was specially noted for his portrait photography,” he said in the same interview.
‘Monalisa’, as he’s fondly known, has collaborated with some of the finest talents in the industry. He worked with Barun Mukherjee in Raajapaarvai, with Sethumadhavan for Chattakaari, and did 25 films with Kamal Haasan. Ramamani was known to be Kamal’s favourite photographer. About his association with the actor, and his work belonging completely to the analogue era, he said, “I have worked in 25 films with Kamal Haasan, ever since ‘Rajapaarvai’, ‘Indian’ and ‘Mudhalvan’ with Shankar and many such works. But I haven’t yet ventured into the digital age.”
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Known for his beautifully composed photos, Monalisa would often tell his students that action shots made for better photographs. A V Bhaskar credits him with changing still photography in Tamil Cinema. On his social media account, Bhaskar wrote, “A Photographer who changed the cinema-still photography from conventional ready-steady-click to action Stills. How can one forget his action picture of Kamal Hassan in GURU movie where Kamal breaks a glass and this man shot this picture with a 120 film camera in one single click he got an unbelievable action picture.”
Ramamani also appeared in front of the camera in some films. His distinctive white beard fetched him many roles in films, and in television series such as Nagavalli, and Rajarajeswari.
Upon his passing, photographer ‘Stills’ Ravi, and stylist Anu Parthasarathy expressed their condolences on social media.
Condolences to the family …RIP uncle …wonderful human being photographer Ramamani ( Monalisa) pic.twitter.com/i5bF9tKfle
— Anu Parthasarathy (@anustylist) August 22, 2016
Featured Image Courtesy: The New Indian Express