Hema Malini and Dev Anand were filming the playful number, Pal Bhar Ke Liye from Johnny Mera Naam at Bandra's Mehboob Studio when director Vijay Anand predicted that the Kishore Kumar song would be a superhit. He called on film photographer Damodar Kamat to capture history in the making. The sequence had Malini grumpily ignore Dev Anand's advances by slamming shut several windows at him. When posing for a still, Malini held the same taut expression but Kamat felt it wouldn't work. He praised her sensuous eyes and the actress blushed to reveal a hint of a smile. The result was the iconic photograph that was used to promote the film. Only Kamat, who died of a heart attack on November 27, 1967 (also his birthday) at the age of 47, wasn't around to watch the film when it released in 1970.
A self-taught photographer, Kamat's love for his craft took him from his hometown in Belgaum to Kolhapur in his 20s to learn the finer nuances of photography from local technicians. In 1945, he moved to Mumbai and set up Kamat Foto Flash in Mahalaxmi.

His son, Vidyadhar Kamat, also a film photographer and granddaughter Neha have kept his flagship enterprise running and meticulously archived his collection of 3,00,000 photographs, including almost every Madhubala, Nutan, Nargis and Meena Kumari photograph ever captured.

Vidyadhar says his father knew the physical flaws of stars he shot and the angles that accentuated their finer traits. “Nutan and Nargis both had oblong faces so my father would click them from eye level or lower,” he adds. Vidyadhar and his daughter Neha have now teamed up with ex-banker Indrayani Deekshit, who has previously written a book on the history of Allahabad Bank, in researching and penning a biography on his late father’s work.

Sitting in their Goregaon office, surrounded by archival images, Vidyadhar gets nostalgic. “My father used to drive a Plymouth in those days,” he says, explaining that lugging the camera and its affiliated equipment warranted a station wagon. It was the same vehicle, Vidyadhar remembers, that he would hope to spot, waiting at a bus stop after school. Each time he did, it meant he tag along for shoots where he would be treated like royalty and offered cold drinks and snacks.

Back then, photography was an intense affair. “One had to compose the shot, remove the magazine, check the ground glass, recompose, reinsert the magazine and remove the blinder before a single shot could be taken,” he explains, adding that each photograph took about 10 minutes and that cameras had no view finders either, leaving a lot to intuition. “Even actors were patient and would hold the expression and pose," he adds, pointing out that this was commendable, considering they held a look braving blazing heat of the tungsten lights.

Film stills were also used to extract more funds from producers. “The makers would show the cost incurred in elaborate sets, costumes, locations and even make a case for further funding," explains Vidyadhar, adding how show cards were made with the same stills to project during the interval in a bid to publicise upcoming releases since trailers were unheard of.

Vidyadhar wants his father's biography to reflect his time and the state of cinema then. “I want him to be remembered for his work and his invaluable contribution to the film industry," he concludes.


KAAGAZ KE PHOOL (1959)
Often, Kamat held the publicity shoots for films at his studio since it was difficult to lug a heavy camera to the sets each time. After wrapping up the day's shoot, Waheeda Rahman and Guru Dutt arrived at Famous Studios in costume. Dutt wanted to subliminally portray the intimacy between the lead pair. His diktat was that they would have their eyes closed in the photograph. Kamat, who had shot the two earlier for Pyaasa, knew that it had to be a close shot and used lights to intensify the focus on their faces. The result was a still that shows the pair's crackling chemistry and ended up gracing the film's poster.


NAACH GHAR (1959)
This rare picture of Helen was clicked by Kamat on the sets of the film Naach Ghar. Helen was asked to curl up against a pole that held the tent under which the set was built. Being a long exposure shot, the actress had to hold her expression for a long time. Despite being an actress with one of the best frames in the industry, Kamat wanted to capture Helen's eyes and used lights in such a way that the background faded. Years later, when Kamat's son Vidyadhar showed this photograph to Salman Khan during the shoot of Wanted, he requested a six-foot version be made.


SAHIB BIWI AUR GHULAM (1962)
This famous still is from the song Na Jao Saiya Chhuda Ke Baiyan, from the film Sahib Biwi Aur Ghulam. Kamat knew that Meena Kumari had a rather broad jaw and so never took a low angle shot. Often, he requested her to mask her jaw with her hands or pallu. This was shot on location, when the actress had just finished shooting the song. Kamat requested her to stretch out on the bed juggling a glass in her hand. He managed to give the picture depth using a back light which separated Meena Kumari from the background with the help of well-crafted shadows. Kamat also focused on her eyes to convey her sensuality and the pensive mood of the song.