Leading Light

“I just could not study and pursue academics. I opted out at the first opportunity and started training as a gaffer at the age of 19,” says Dedhia,who has worked on films,such as Don,Luck By Chance and Guzaarish as well as international productions,including Eat Pray Love and MI 4: The Ghost Protocol. Although she’s been in the industry for a decade,Dedhia still remains the only female gaffer. “I suppose it’s too physically challenging and grimy a job,” she says.

Gaffing wasn’t her first career choice — Dedhia quit studies to professionally play pool snooker,which she pursued for two years before giving in to her instinct. “My father discouraged me and the lightboys working in his company laughed,pointing out that I was too frail for the work,” she recounts. But it only added to her determination.

However,she made a pact with her father that she wouldn’t assist him till she learnt the basics and worked her way up. It took her six years to meet his expectations. “I started from scratch,working as a lightgirl,accompanying other gaffers on every possible shoot. I had to begin with learning the names of every small nut,bolt and clipper. I would climb ladders,tarafas (a kind of scaffolding),carry and fix heavy lights and help in the set-up. It was the only way to learn,” she says.

While she stood out among the men at this job,people weren’t altogether surprised watching her work as they were aware of her lineage. Dedhia admits it also helped her gain acceptance among her peers and the industry in general. “But it didn’t mean my team was forgiving. If I made a mistake. I would get shouted at by the lightboys and the gaffer whom I was assisting.” Although she’s a gaffer now and doesn’t need to get her hands dirty,the petite girl says she enjoys the hard work so much that she takes every opportunity to climb atop a tarafa to rig a light. Yet,she admits that the most challenging part of her job is handling the tempers of the staff and crew under stress.

Currently,Dedhia has taken a break from movies,focussing mostly on commercials as it allows her time to “do my own thing”. She is choosing film projects carefully — only those where she gets to work with international cinematographers so that she can learn their techniques. “My next feature film is likely to be an international film by National Award-winning filmmaker Kranti Kanade. But even if I don’t take up a project as a gaffer,I assist my father on international productions. It is

always a good learning experience,” she says.