“I, C.J. Reddy, hail from a small village in Chittoor district. My father was a teacher, a farmer, post-master and a social worker. He won the hearts of people by mentoring and guiding students to join either the defence services or the teaching profession based on their aptitude. As he was instrumental in shaping the lives of many educators and military personnel in & around 10 villages; he is still remembered with love by all of them.
After completing intermediate, I studied cinematography at the Madras Film Institute and graduated in 1968. We learnt everything the hard way back then as all the exercises were more theoretical than practical in all the film institutes. Fortunately, we had outstanding guest speakers like Marcus Bartley, Nimay Ghosh and S. Krishnaswamy from whom we learnt a lot. We also used to mostly watch Bengali and Malayalam films focussing on real-life scenarios to understand how life can be represented on the celluloid.
After passing out, I started my career as an assistant to W.R.Sampath, a renowned cameraman who is regarded as the master of black & white photography. He taught me various techniques of lighting. Most of the old films during my times contained no zoom or pan shots and the camera itself weighed 35kgs. So, every experience that I was a part of, was a new learning for me. Though it was a black and white age, it was a golden era as the focus was not merely on using the equipment alone.
I worked in the Madras Film Industry for a couple of years as an assistant cameraman for the films ‘Vyuira manama’ directed by K S Gopal Krishnan, ‘Vichithra Kutumbam directed by K.S.Prakash Rao and ‘Chikkamma’ directed by W.R.Sampath.
With the advent of the electronic media, I joined Delhi Doordarshan as a cameraman. My first coverage using a 16mm film camera was that of the president, V.V.Giri laying the wreath at Raj Ghat on 30th Jan., 1971. It was well appreciated as I shot the entire event of 2 mins. in a single shot. Another major event, that I was applauded for was the coverage of the Sardar Bazaar Riots where I was able to aptly record the footage in spite of being thrown into the fire by the miscreants. Fortunately, I was saved by the police.
I also had the opportunity to accompany many Presidents and Prime Ministers during their abroad visits as a news cameraman where every place I visited brought a new learning experience for me.
Then, there was a time when I directed challenging documentaries at Films Division, Mumbai like showing the efficiency of defence establishments and more. Out of the many films I directed, Himalayas Calling (trekking to Himalayas) and Never Say Die (physically handicapped) got me International recognition.
On the request of Govt. of A.P, I joined APSFDC as Advisor (Films) and was instrumental in establishing a full- fledged newsreels, documentary and film production unit. Among the films I directed, ‘Maaromula Pranthalo Manchirojulu’ (remote area development) and ‘Toli Velugu’ (primary education) won me A.P. State Nandi awards.After leaving the service in 1987, I established my own production house Tarangini Video Studio where we produced over 100 documentary films, 5 TV serials, corporate films, advertisements and more. I also trained over 30 youngsters who are now well placed in various media houses. The company is now renamed by my daughter as Tarangini Mediaworks and continues to make films for clients of both National and International repute.
In 2008, I was appointed as COO for SVBC channel where I’m known for expanded the connectivity of the channel to all the households in A.P., Telangana, Karnataka and Tamilnadu by interacting with MSO’s and cable operators. SVBC channel was also appreciated by all the devotees of Lord Balaji and the audience of the channel for initiating the live telecasts of Srivari kalyanam in various places from Kanyakumari to Haridwar; under my guidance.To all the aspiring young adults, my only suggestion is – master the technology and focus on quality of your work rather than looking for short term profits and quick money; if you aspire to leave behind a mark of your work.”