conAnima

A filmmaker and a painter, Manoj was born in Benaras, India. He completed his Bachelors in Fine Arts and Bachelors in Psychology from MGKV University, Benaras. He did his Post Graduate in Advertising & Public Relations from Indian Institute of Mass communications, Delhi.

As a professional painter, he has many solo as well as group exhibitions to his credit. His paintings have been exhibited at various galleries and online art fairs such as Nehru Art Gallery, Mumbai; Creative Rising, New York; Year in Review, Miami; Nehru Art Gallery, Benaras; Lalit Kala Vibhag, Benaras; N.G.M.A, Kala Ghoda, Mumbai and Connaught Place, Delhi, just to name a few.

As a filmmaker, he has written and directed several short films and documentary films that have been selected and screened at many prestigious national and international film festivals. His films incorporate a nonlinear approach to storylines and radical filmmaking techniques which manifest in the form of disruptive visual aesthetics which comes from the virtue of his being a painter. His first feature film is a German fiction titled ‘Con Anima’. His second feature film is titled ‘The Icecake’ which is shot at the height of 12500 feet above sea level in the Himalayan range of Spiti Valley in India. The film is a story of 12 motorcycle riders on a dangerous and adventurous journey. He is a vagabond traveller who loves filming stories across the globe. He made 5 documentary films during his 17000km travel on an experimental trip to 23 states of India for 55 days conducting 25000 personal interviews and 2.5 lakhs mass interviews. The documentary series titled "India@Tomorrow 8pm" is based on how India is evolving in the Twenty-first Century.

He has co-created theatrical plays as a creative consultant where he plans and designs story and performance amalgamating his painting aesthetics and creative influences. A few of his notable plays include Moirang Thoibi which is a Manipuri Folk Tale about the beautiful princess of Thoibi. The play is uniquely designed incorporating dyeing old Indian tribal art forms like Thang Ta, Kaibul Lamjao, Jagoi, Chhou into storytelling. The play was performed at Prithvi theatre, Mumbai, India. The play titled ‘Andha Yug’ (Blind Era) has Manoj performing live paintings in almost dark environs of theatre lighting besides planning the creative visualisation of the entire play. For the play titled ‘Ek Kanth Vishpai’, he created an interactive stage ambience using the gradients of lights similar to the colour gradation he uses on his canvas.

Along with making films, he is involved in bringing social change through his creative influences. He has been working exclusively on the social inclusion of blind people into the streams of arts and aesthetics. During his solo painting exhibition titled ‘Reborn’ at Nehru Art Gallery, Mumbai, he invited blind students from schools of Mumbai to enable them to ‘see’ the paintings. With his guided interactive sessions, the blind students were able to interpret the forms used in paintings and the rationale behind the colours. Later, the blind students were able to paint their own thoughts on the canvas under his guidance.
He has initiated a movement to create ‘Cinema for Blind’ for which he did detailed research at the National Institute of Blind, Mumbai where he studied the expectations and challenges of the visually challenged people from the Cinema.

FEATURE FILMS:
1. Con Anima, 2021
The film is a story of a lead violinist of an orchestra, Emma who heals Walter, a talented violinist suffering from musical dyslexia and makes him play as her replacement as the soloist in the symphony orchestra against all odds.

2. The Icecake
The film is a story of 12 motorcycle riders on a dangerous and adventurous journey on the isolated valleys and freezing snowstorms in Spiti Valley at the height of 12500km above sea level in the Himalayas where they face deceit, lust, fight, and calamities that challenge their survival every moment.

SHORT FILMS
1. Recycle Mind, 2007
Genre: Drama
Duration: 24 min

2. A Decision, 2008
Genre: Drama
Duration: 18 min

3. I Love You, 2009
Genre: Drama
Duration: 6 min

DOCUMENTARY FILMS
India@Tomorrow 8pm is a series of 5 documentary films born out of extensive research through road trip across India on the changing lives and times of people in Twenty-First century India.