An exhibition with equipment used during early days of movies is a major attraction at Siri Fort Auditorium’s Centenary Film Festival, marking 100 years of Indian cinema. Divya Kaushik reports
People of various ages caught a feel of what it must have been like to look at the world through the large, heavy, 800 mm lens. It was the first of the few displays at an ongoing Siri Fort Auditorium exhibition.
The tele-lens had been widely used for wildlife shooting and sports coverage in the late 60s. The show is an additional treat for visitors at the Centenary Film Festival, celebrating 100 years of cinema. Apart from film screenings and panel discussions on the film industry, two exhibitions in the open area outside each auditorium, revealed facts and developments about Indian cinema.
The first displayed cameras, lights, lenses and a panel featuring pictures, with a brief about the advent of films. The other one was dedicated to Satyajit Ray.
“The cameras were brought from Mumbai. We plan to open a National Camera Museum there. These rare lenses and cameras form part of our collection. With filmmaking going digital and new equipment and cameras introduced, these machines have disappeared from sets. We want to preserve them as important parts of cinema heritage,” said Ravinder Singh, a cameraman from the Films Division, Mumbai Branch.
Singh informed that he had worked earlier as an assistant camera person in films like Trineta, Hafta Band and Sailaab. While adults seemed more interested in film screenings and posters, the equipment with its wooden frames, appeared to have caught the fancy of young people.
“Some know a bit of the technical stuff and wanted to learn more,” shared Singh. Taking us around, he indicated the 16 35 mm Portable Projector, GE make, widely used during many outdoor shoots.
Next was the Arricod 35 mm camera. “It has a dual function, which could expose the picture negative and record the audio or magnetic tape at the same time, with the single unit. It consists an Arriflex 35 mm camera inside the blimp housing of 35 mm format and the audio of 16 mm format with a Klang film sound unit. It was used during the 50s and 60s for synchronised shooting,” he explained. Singh also introduced us to NAGRA III, the first record to be used for film work.
The Arriflex, 35 mm camera is one of the most significant motion picture camera of all time. It was first made in 1960. “It has an improved viewing system with a large viewfinder. The other important one is the Bombspotting 35 mm camera used during war time for aircraft bomb spotting. There is also a sing-sound camera used to make silent commercial films during the 70s and 80s,” shared Singh.
There were lights used in the early days of Indian filmmaking for shadowless photographs. Four round ones were placed on a small metallic square panel.
“They were used in those days to capture close up of the actors,” said Singh. The most important light was a huge 10 kv tungsten light.
“It used to provide maximum light on sets and was used for days when outdoor shoots were not possible due to extreme weather. It provided equal light till a good distance and was ideal for indoor shoots requiring some good lighting,” Singh added. Apart from the equipment and panels that explain the concept of patachitra, pictures of a lumiere Brothers film show at Watson Hotel in Mumbai on July 7, 1896 and shots of Alam Ara, there was a tent for screenings.
“It is a tribute to Dadasaheb Phalke. If you read his biography and early days, you learn he was inspired to make films after he saw the British watching videos of royal weddings in tents. It is said that he shot his films in a tent, and would carry it with him,” said Singh.