M. J. Radhakrishnan

M. J. Radhakrishnan (1957/1958 – 12 July 2019) was an Indian cinematographer working mainly in Malayalam films. He got National film award 2018 as best cinematographer for his work on Malayalam movie Oolu. He won Kerala State Award for Best Cinematography 7 times (the most), equal with Mankada Ravi Varma. Earlier he worked as a still photographer and then as an associate to cinematographer turned director Shaji N. Karun. His important works included Deshadanam, Karunam (1999) Naalu Pennungal (2007), Veettilekkulla Vazhi (2010) and Akasathinte Niram (Color of Sky; 2012). His films were screened at several prominent film festivals around the world including Cannes, Shanghai, Cairo, Montreal, Telluride, Jeonju, Toronto, Chicago, Rhode Island and Rotterdam. One of his works, Marana Simhasanam (English: "Throne of Death", French: "Le Trone de la mort", 1999), won Caméra d'Or (Golden Camera Award) in the Un Certain Regard section at the 1999 Cannes Film Festival. Another film Veyilmarangal (Trees under the sun) won Golden Goblet award for Outstanding Artistic achievement at Shanghai International Film Festival 2019. He worked on over 117 feature films and several documentaries and worked with some of the prominent Indian filmmakers including Adoor Gopalakrishnan, Murali Nair, Shaji N. Karun, TV Chandran, Dr. Biju, Jayaraj and Renjith. He mostly worked on arthouse films and was known for his natural lighting styles. In a career spanning more than two decades, he worked with a number of young film makers, mostly in their maiden ventures. Film Kalamandalam Hyderali 2019, directed by Kiran G. Nath was his last completed work as director of photography.

Early life M. J. Radhakrishnan was born in Tholicode, Punalur located in Kollam district, Kerala. MJR was very passionate about photography in his teenage days.

Career M. J. Radhakrishnan began his career as a still photographer. He worked as a still photographer on some films for which Shaji N Karun was the cinematographer. Then he started working as an associate cinematographer under Shaji N Karun, who was a major influence in his life. His first independent work as a cinematographer was Maamalakalkkapurathu (1988), directed by Ali Akbar. 2011:Zanzibar International Film Festival-SIGNIS Award for Cinematography - Veettilekkulla Vazhi 2013:Oaxaca FilmFest-Global Feature Section- Outstanding achievement in Cinematography/Mención honorífica mejor fotografía - Papilio Buddha 2015:Kazan International Film Festival, Russia -Best Cinematographer - Perariyathavar 2016:Indian International film festival Queensland, Australia -Best Cinematographer - Valiya Chirakulla Pakshikal 2017:Indian International film festival Queensland, Australia -Best Cinematographer - Sound of Silence (2017 film) 2017: Cincinnati Indian International film festival, Ohio, USA -Best Cinematographer - Painting Life 2019

Personal life He is survived by his wife, Sreelatha; son, Yadukrishnan; and daughter, Neeraja. His son, Yadukrishnan, made his debut as a cinematographer with the film Papa Buka, directed by Dr. Biju.