A Sreekar Prasad, India’s most accomplished film editor talks with Subhash K Jha, about his work with the brilliant Malayalam director Shaji Karun who passed away on April 28th at the age of 73.
How would you evaluate the contribution of Shaji Karun to Indian cinema?
Shaji Karun, to me, was such an inspiration in not only making his films but the way he looked at cinema itself as such an artistic expression.
How long had you known Shaji Karun?
I had known him for twenty-five years, ever since I edited his film Vanaprastham, and since then, I have continued to be part of his cinematic journey till he left us all. Ever since then, he has been a mentor, a friend, and well-wisher to me.
How was he on a personal level?
He was such a soft-spoken man that people could hardly hear his voice while working; many a time when we were editing, I could understand his mind and wavelength. But his own assistants sometimes could not hear Shaji Sir’s softspoken words, and I had to brief them sometimes; he was so gentle in the way he communicated in person. But in filmmaking, every shot or every detail he put in the film had so much to say.
What, according to you, made Shaji Karun a storytelling genius?
The best part of his storytelling was the subtext and the metaphors he brought organically to his films.
How closely did you work with him?
We used to think alike that the cinema was an art and that artistic expression would remain in history for perpetuity. That is why films had to be made with a view that it could be watched over the years and decades, like books or paintings, and not just entertain for a few days only.
I feel he did too little work…
His visual sense was such a blessing to watch, it is sad that he is no more. I had always wished he had made more films in his lifetime. But whatever he has shot or directed and left for us over the last few decades have so much depth and emotion that we can cherish them for generations to come.
