Ajatshatru is an India-based cinematographer whose work blends grounded realism with striking visual storytelling.

A graduate of Central Saint Martins College, London (Motion Graphics and Design, Class of 2017), he brings a distinct visual approach shaped by design thinking and a strong instinct for human emotion.

He began his film career in 2018, assisting acclaimed cinematographer Rajeev Ravi on Anurag Kashyap’s Mukkabaaz. He went on to train under some of the industry’s finest—including Sylvester Fonseca (Sacred Games, Manmarziyaan), Shanker Raman (Maagh), and Jay Oza (Yudhra).

Ajatshatru’s breakout as an independent cinematographer came with Lords of Lockdown, a visceral, visually haunting feature documentary shot during India’s first COVID-19 lockdown. Produced and presented by Anurag Kashyap, the film premiered at the Rotterdam Film Festival, where it placed second in the Best Documentary category. His lens captured not just desolation, but the poetry of survival, the tension of stillness, and the quiet dignity of lives in flux.

He followed this with two acclaimed shorts that further showcased his versatility: Two Sinners, directed by Samir Zaidi and produced by Vishal Bhardwaj, selected for the New York Indian Film Festival; and Susu, a sharp comedy that premiered at the Lift-Off Global Network Film Festival, Tokyo and Bangalore International Film Festival, 2025. In each, Ajatshatru demonstrates an uncanny ability to shift registers—from raw realism to lyrical absurdity—while maintaining visual integrity and narrative depth.

Across fiction, nonfiction, and the hybrid spaces in between, Ajatshatru’s work is bound by a deep respect for story.