Simple emotions and grand canvases mark the working style of this Chennai (India) born filmmaker. A person who breathes life into his visuals through real places and people, Bharatbala tells Indian stories with a universal sensibility. Having grown up on a diet of international cinema, Bharatbala was deeply influenced by the works of David Lean, David Lynch and Bimal Roy. An indefatigable worker, Bharatbala has a penchant for finding his stories in the most exotic locations across the Indian subcontinent.

His first film Hari Om premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival 2004 and travelled the globe to over 35 international festivals, winning 8 people’s choice awards. He then went on to make his critically acclaimed second film, Maryan, starring actors Dhanush and Parvathy.

He is the first person in India to have worked on the IMAX format, producing Aishwarya Rai starrer, Taj Mahal. He is known for “Vande Mataram”, a big idea for India that took the world of film communication by storm and stands as an example of the director’s grand vision that materialised into a very successful cinematic endeavour. His other celebrated projects include, “Gurus of Peace”, a docu-feature on the Nobel Peace prize winners, Dalai Lama, Shimon Peres, Nelson Mandela, and more; Incredible India, and the National Anthem with 50 of India’s musical maestros, including Pt. Bhimsen Joshi, Pt. Hariprasad Chaurasia, Lata Mangeshkar and Jagjit Singh. He is also the mastermind behind the conception and direction of the opening and closing ceremonies of Commonwealth Games 2010.

Bharatbala’s most recent endeavour Virtual Bharat, a series of 1,000 films on untold human stories of India, premiered in August 2019. The stories are under 10-minute films, spanning people, landscapes, literature, folklore, dance, music, traditions, architecture, and more.