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Lights, camera, business!

Celebrity photographer Atul Kasbekar zooms in on corporate India to give head honchos a distinct look

STYLE MEETS SUBSTANCE Ratan Tata, right, through the lens of Atul Kasbekar

Picture this. Ratan Tata in an immaculately tailored suit, seated with a menu card in the ostentatiously done up Zodiac Grill at Taj Mahal Palace and Tower. Mukesh Ambani in the soft glow of the evening sky on the terrace of Sea Wind, the Ambani residence. K.V. Kamath in a serene mood against the backdrop of the modern glass-and-steel ICICI headquarters. A cheery Vijay Mallya in the cockpit of a Kingfisher Airlines wearing designer shades.

Every image has a story to tell. Tata's global flavour, Mukesh's efforts to reach for the sky, Kamath's human face and Mallya symbolically flying good times.

After capturing the most famous faces of showbiz — Amitabh Bachchan, Aamir Khan, Aishwarya Rai, Shah Rukh Khan, Cindy Crawford and Pierce Brosnan, celebrity photographer Atul Kasbekar zooms in on corporate India to give head honchos a distinct look. His newly launched Corporate Image will focus on "top management identity."

"The fact is that while tremendous attention is paid to corporate, product and retail identity, management identity has always been ignored. Corporate Image hopes to plug the gap. We will photographically capture the personality of a company through the individual who lead it," reveals the photographer, whose works have been featured on the covers of several international magazines including Time, Elle, Cosmopolitan and L'Officiel.

Extensive research

"The pictures will be based on extensive research about the company's ideals, personal values and individual sense of style. It's personality-driven creativity — what an individual wants to be known as. A synergy of style and substance. I usually ask my subjects to describe themselves and their companies in three words. Surprisingly, corporate heads are pretty smart when it comes to facing the camera. After all, there's been so much media around them in the recent years. It's hard to stay invisible!"

Continuing, the ace known for his attention to detail and elegant aesthetic, says, "The challenge lies in making every shot an experience. For this, the right mood and ambience matter. Whether it's a snake charmer, a film star or a corporate icon, a photographer must make a connection with his subject. Once you break the ice and connect with people, half your job is done and you can be sure the outcome will be natural."

The spark

Going into what actually spurred him to conceive Corporate Image, the photographer, who topped his class at the Brooks Institute of Photography, Santa Barbara, in 1988, says, "I've seen the photographs of top industrialists in corporate literature and in the media. In most cases, they don't portray a distinct identity. That set me thinking. Sixty per cent of my work is celebrity-driven — cinema and lifestyle magazines, advertisements and the Kingfisher calendar. So, this is going to be a refreshing departure from the routine."

And what about the CEOs of showbiz? "Yes, the countries entertainment industry is getting increasingly corporatised. And I've shot the most powerful CEOs of them all — Yash Chopra, Shah Rukh, Aamir and Amitabh. After all, there's no business like show business," he smiles.

T. KRITHIKA REDDY

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