V K Murthy - Hemmeya kanndadiganige sanda Dada saheb phalke prashasti

Kannadiga,Cinematographer V K Murthy (87 years)has been chosen for the Dada Saheb Phalke Award for the year 2008.

Born in 1923 in Mysore, Murthy earned his diploma in cinematography from S J Polytechnic, Bangalore in its very first batch 1943-46.which he joined and after obtaining a diploma certificate in 1946, moved on to the then Bombay for internship in cinematography.Having spent nearly five decades in Mumbai, the ace cinematographer is now based in Bangalore.

The award is conferred annually by the Government of India for outstanding contribution to films. This is the first time that a cinematographer has been selected for this award.

Murthy is credited with providing some of Indian cinema's most breathtaking visual moments in classics like Guru Dutt's Kagaz Ke Phool, Sahib Biwi Aur Ghulam, Baazi, Jaal, Chaudavin Ka Chand, Pyasa, 12 O'Clock and Ziddi. In fact, he has worked in most of Guru Dutt's movies.
He also partnered for Pakeezah and Razia Sultan.

His working life spans four long decades, from his early collaboration with Guru Dutt IN the 1950s to his work in Shyam Benegal's mega-serial Bharat Ek Khoj and one of the most acclaimed Kannada movies titled Hoova Hannu in 1993.

He is a recipient of the IIFA Lifetime Achievement Award in Amsterdam in 2005.

Murthy will be the 56th recipient of the Dada Saheb Phalke Award. The President of India will confer the award, which carries a cash prize of Rs 10 lakh, a Swarna Kamal and a shawl.

I got an opportunity to attend a function in Townhall in Bangalore on 2nd February wherte VK murthy was felicitated. I saw VK murthy from so near .I took his couple of photos and a viedo also .

Here are his photos and videos I took :

V. K. Murthy , a one-time violinist and jailed freedom fighter, was Guru Dutt's regular cameraman on his movies. He provided some of Indian cinema's most breathtaking images in starkly contrasted black and white. He also shot India's first cinemascope (75mm) movie, Kaagaz Ke Phool. For his contribution to film industry, particularly Indian film industry he was awarded the IIFA Lifetime Achievement Award ceremony held at Amsterdam in 2005.

The hero behind the screen V. K. Murthy is the one who created mesmerizing effects with his cinematography received the prestigious IIFA Lifetime Achievement Award in 2005. An ace Cinematographer from Bangalore was part of the Guru Dutt team. This stalwart was the cinematographer for one of the most acclaimed Kannada movie Hoovu Hannu - a directorial production of Rajendra Singh Babu and incidentally, Murthy has acted in that film too!

In 1959 Murthy shot India’s first cinemascope movie ‘Kagaz Ke Phool’ .Guru Dutt's Kaagaz Ke Phool, a movie considered his best was appreciated for its supremacy. More than anything else, what it won the most accolades for was its cinematography that created unparalleled history in the field of cinematography. It was none other than V. K. Murthy who did the magic and he even won a Filmfare Award. He repeated the feat for Sahib Bibi Aur Ghulam getting the 1962 award. He never worked with any other directors as long as Dutt was alive. Some of Murthy's best work is found in Guru Dutt's movies like Pyaasa, Sahib Bibi Aur Ghulam and Aar-Paar. Murthy then worked with Kamal Amrohi on his masterpiece, Pakeezah and Razia Sultan. Post Guru Dutt, he like many of Guru Dutt team were not able to give any pinnacle work. In later years, he worked with directors like Pramod Chakravarthy (Naya Zamana, Jugnu), Shyam Benegal and Govind Nihalani (Tamas).