Seeman Mourns Cinematographer Chezhiyan's Death

Media Wing (LetsxOtt)

Journalist

10 July 2026 · 5 days ago

2 min read

The Cinematographer Who Turned Villages Into Poetry Is Gone...

Source: LetsXott

Naiyandi Thalaivar Seeman is mourning the loss of Chezhiyan, the cinematographer and filmmaker who died in Chennai on Friday morning after a long illness.He was just 57.Seeman remembered him as a man who trained under legendary cameraman PC Sreeram before making a name of his own, working on films like Kalloori, Thenmerku Paruvakaatru and Paradesi.That's the kind of career most technicians only dream about.

Chezhiyan started out as an apprentice, learning the ropes under PC Sreeram before he ever picked up a camera on his own terms.His real breakthrough came with Kalloori in 2007, a film that got people talking about his eye for realism, and Paradesi, his 2013 collaboration with director Bala, brought him even bigger recognition, including a Best Cinematography win at the London Film Festival that year. Somewhere in between he also shot Thenmerku Paruvakaatru,which went on to win the National Film Award for Best Feature Film in Tamil.Not bad for someone who started out as an assistant.

Later on, Chezhiyan stepped behind the director's chair himself.His debut film To Let told the story of a lower middle class family hunting for a rented house, and it struck a chord, winning the National Film Award for Best Feature Film. He wrote too, authoring a series of books on world cinema for Tamil readers. Word of his death spread fast through the Tamil film industry on Friday, with actors,directors and technicians sharing their grief on social media.Chezhiyan had been under treatment at a private hospital in Chennai's Taramani.