Producer, director, cinematographer and photographer Prem Sagar met Parveen Babi only once, and it was the photo shoot of his life.
He clicked some of Parveen's best pictures, when she was at the zenith of her movie career.
When it came to shooting Parveen, Sagar recalls, she seemed to know the camera exactly. She knew what the photographer had in mind, and effortlessly allowed him to shoot her pictures.
"I call her 'pearl princess.' You cannot compare her to other heroines," says Sagar.
News Editor (Entertainment) Syed Firdaus Ashraf spoke to Sagar about his pictures of Parveen Babi, which we reproduce here, exclusive to rediff.com
We shot these pictures in a 12 by 12 feet room of an Air-India employee. This was in Santa Cruz (a Mumbai suburb). I loved the backdrop of that room.
If you notice, there is no shadow in these pictures. The idea was 'pearls,' because she had a very pearly-smooth skin texture. Her eyes and skin gave a pearl kind of feeling. She was a pearl girl!
There is a sparkle in this picture. It was created by a special filter, a sparkle-filter.
It was to give a 'princess' kind of look to her. She had a face where her eyes spoke. This picture was very calculatingly done. I found that most of her pictures taken at that time were drab. Her princess look was not being presented. She had a regal look and people didn't bring out the princess in her pictures at that time.
I added that sparkle to bring out her royal look. She always had the 'pearl princess' look. I did not know that she belonged to a royal family. She never told me, but that oozed out of her.
Her hair is scattered, and her mouth is a little open. We applied gloss on her lips to give a sensuous effect. I wanted the 'oomph' and bindas look.
A woman's eyes can be very expressive. That is what I have tried to capture in this picture. If you notice, you can see her eyes clearly. We wanted the viewer to look at her eyes only. She is kamal-naini (lotus-eyed). We wanted to highlight that.
These pictures are very decent. Today, we have vulgar pictures. If you see Raja Ravi Varma's paintings, they are sensuous. He brought that look in the woman. Vulgarity is a cheap way of display.
If you see Parveen's shoulders carefully, they are a perfect curve. They are classic. In these pictures, we are not looking at Parveen as a sex bomb, but Parveen as a very beautiful woman created by God.
We used this photographic effect because of her eyes. It is a very special filter called 'repeater.'
All that you see in the picture is eyes. It is like a disco light. It is to create the mystery around her eyes.
If you see this picture, it seems as if she is trying to talk to you. Now, how does a photograph talk to you? In motion pictures, one has dialogues and movements but photographs are silent.
But I wanted her to have an expression that could 'talk' to you! There is no audio but she is talking to you with her feelings.
The biggest challenge for a still photographer is to see that the picture speaks to you. There is something in your mind that is conveyed by the picture.
She is smiling, and looks happy. She is looking straight into your eyes.
If you notice the famous Mona Lisa portrait, you will find that she is looking at, and following, you. Even in this picture, she was made to look into the lens -- which means looking at the audience. If you move left or right, you will find that she still looking at you. There is a little lighting and that is a 'decanter.'
Technically, we call it a shift of focus or a shift of attention.
Free spirit! Her hair is flying in the breeze.
You shoot 30 to 40 pictures, and say this is the picture you wanted. I wanted to 'freeze' her hair. These kinds of photographs are done with flash to freeze the hair, or with some kind of gimmick, by putting some kind of spray.
This is a natural swing. I asked her to swing her hair and I captured the split second when the swing was steady.
Suppose, in a painting, a girl is sitting under a streetlamp and reading a book. Your eyes will go directly to the girl even though she measures one inch and the painting is two feet. This is called a post-candid picture.
