Aamir Khan learned swimming for the film: Akshay was injured underwater; underwater shoot is not easy, rescue divers are necessary

Shooting underwater costs three times more money, time and energy than shooting on land. Special techniques are required to shoot underwater. Here the importance of the Director of Photography (DOP) increases a lot. How to shoot underwater depends on him.

Apart from this, actors also have to do special preparations. They are first taught swimming. Special attention is paid to diet.

Special care is taken for safety before shooting underwater. Rescue divers are present on the set so that if someone drowns, he can be saved.

Many Hollywood and Bollywood films have been shot underwater. How these films are made and what are the challenges, we will talk about this in the new episode of Reel to Real. For this we spoke to stunt artist Sanobar Pardiwala, underwater cinematographer Priya Seth and actress Madhurima Tuli.

Those who do not have strong lungs have problems in underwater shooting. During the shoot on real location, only 4 to 5 people can go inside the water. This includes two cameramen, a rescue diver and an artist. Actors who do not have strong lungs may have problems in underwater shooting. This is because shooting in water leads to fatigue faster than shooting on land. Also, it is very important for actors to know swimming. Without this, they cannot shoot underwater.

Handling the camera underwater is the most challenging task. To prevent water from entering the camera, it is covered with a special kind of glass. This is a water proof glass. Here the role of the cinematographer increases a lot.

Cinematographer Priya Seth said, ‘We can easily handle the camera on land, but shooting with it underwater is a very challenging task. It is very important for an underwater cinematographer to have knowledge of physics. How much will the camera weigh under water. How will it be moved. How to guide the actors, a cinematographer should know all these things. Apart from this, actors should also understand their job. Many times their preparation is not complete, due to which the entire shoot gets spoiled.’

Stunt artists are also called for underwater shoots. Just as body doubles of actors are often called for fights or dangerous action sequences, stunt artists are sometimes called for underwater shooting. These stunt artists are excellent swimmers who film action sequences even in the deepest waters.

Two stunt artists died due to lack of swimming skills. Stunt artist Sanobar said, ‘While performing underwater stunts, the mind should be calm and breathing should be controlled. Underwater sequences should be performed by only those stunt artists who are certified swimmers. If this is not done, it can lead to a huge danger.’

Sanobar said that once during the shooting of a South film, two stunt artists died. Actually, both of them had to jump from a helicopter into a pond. They jumped down, but they did not know how to swim properly. Unfortunately, both of them died.

It is not easy to shoot in the sea, that is why most sets are made in studios. It is not easy to go and shoot in the sea. There is always a fear of cyclones and storms. Also, there is the issue of dangerous fishes and the safety of the actors inside the water. Apart from this, there are many problems including camera handling in shooting under water.

This is why makers of films which are completely water-centric find it better to shoot in studios.

Artificial storms and cyclones can also be shown inside the studio. There is an underwater film studio in Belgium. The pool inside it is 10 meters deep. Here waves up to one meter high can be raised with the help of electricity. Artificial rain can also be made here. Solar panels and heat pumps are used to keep the pool water warm.

Here, scenes of storm and cyclone can also be shown through special effects. Apart from this, the color of water can also be changed. The person who prepared this, Wim Michels, is himself a diver and cinematographer.

Why the need to build an underwater film studio? There is a special reason behind building an underwater film studio. Actually, Wim Michels along with his crew members used to go to the sea for several days and wait for the waves to rise. This used to delay the shooting of the film a lot. Moreover, it used to be dangerous for the actors to shoot at the actual location. Thinking about these things, he built an underwater film studio. When Akshay Kumar got injured while shooting underwater, he was afraid that the fishes would swallow him. The Hindi film Blue, which came in 2009, was a completely water-centric film. Most of the shooting of the film was done underwater. The lead actor of this film, Akshay Kumar, also got injured during a scene.

Had to stay in the sea for 12 hours during the shooting of the film – Madhurima The 2013 film Warning was shot underwater. Actress Madhurima Tuli has worked in this film. About the experience of working in the film, Madhurima said, ‘This is the first time a film of this kind was made in India. That is why we had to work very hard. We had 1-2 weeks of swimming training because many actors did not know swimming.

In the film, I had to dive underwater, for which I had already trained. We used to stay in water for 3-4 hours during training, because during the shooting we had to stay in the sea for 12-12 hours. Before the shooting started, the scuba divers had thoroughly inspected the entire sea for safety.

We got 40 days to shoot this film. Before going for the shoot, we had to take a complete stock of the weather. Sometimes, while shooting, we were bitten by fishes. The whole body got tanned due to direct sunlight.

Madhurima further said, ‘I was very scared while shooting this film. Me and my co-actor had to give a shot in the middle of the sea. Even though a scuba diver was there for our safety , there was still a fear in my mind that what will happen if a shark comes? What will happen if a snake bites?

I was also bitten by a jellyfish. Due to this, I got rashes all over my leg. There was a lot of burning sensation. Due to this, I could not shoot that day.

Madhurima told that these things should be kept in mind especially for underwater shoot-

Madhurima also told that when underwater shooting is done, special attention has to be paid to food. There should be more amount of protein in the food. If there is a lack of protein, then actors face a lot of difficulty in shooting.