Raj Krishnan coming into his own

Tuesday, June 20, 2006
Chennai (UNI): Raj Krishnan, a fledgling sound engineer, has made forays into the tinsel world three years ago and has been earning a sure call-up whenever renowned directors like Priyadarshan and Santhosh Sivan think of a new theme. He made inroads into Kollywood with the box office grosser Lesa Lesa and Navrasa, a Santhosh Sivan movie. Navarasa bagged the Best Tamil Movie Award and Raj, by giving brilliant sound track to a girl's search for her uncle's identity, cleared his own track for many box office hits. In Malayalam he shot to fame with Ananthabhadram, a technically superb film. In Bollywood too, he has etched his name right from the first attempt Yeh Meraa Ghar, Yeh Tera Ghar, to Malamaal Weekly.

Raj, the son of noted music director M G Radhakrishnan, inherits a family legacy of music right from his grand parents. His uncle M G Sreekumar is a well known playback singer in the South. Looking back at the trodden path, he admits that it was S Priyadarshan, a film director non-pareil, who put him in the trajectory of growth. Raj dreamt of being a cinematographer and wished to join the Pune Film Institute. ''Priyadarshan asked me to try my luck as an audiographer in his new '4 Frames Sound Company', in Chennai and it has made all the difference'', he reminisces.

''There is a long list of technical assistants behind the success of a film but theirs is often a thankless task. Only a few filmgoers are informed about the technical spices. The post production works are often overshadowed'', he observes. He is upbeat after bagging the Kerala Film Fraternity Award for the best sound engineer along with his father who bagged the best music director award. Raj was also a part of Rajiv Anjal's Hollywood work Beyond the Soul, a work that unfolds a heady mix of Indian beliefs and Western storyline. Films like Prajapati in Malayalam, Ee in Tamil and Santhosh Sivan's Road to Heaven are awaiting release.