Laxman Utekar – Mumbai based cinematographer and filmmaker of ‘Luka Chuppi’ fame

Laxman Utekar is a film director and cinematographer associated with Bollywood and Marathi with a hit record. As a film director he owns two Marathi and one Bollywood film to his credit. As of 2019, he has directed three films in the past 6 years – Tapaal and Lalbaugchi Rani in Marathi and Luka Chuppi in Bollywood and owns 100% track record as a successful filmmaker. As a cinematographer, except his debut film – Khanna & Iyer, Blue, Lekar Hum Deewana Dil and Boss, all his releases – English Vinglish, Dear Zindagi, Hindi Medium and 102 Not Out were critically acclaimed and emerged as box office hits too. He also worked as a cinematographer of award winning Hindi film, Dekh Indian Circus.

Laxman Utekar is based in Mumbai. As a full-fledged cinematographer 2007 flop film, Khanna & Iyer marked his film debut. But later he got associated with several hit films, and his most recent release as a director (debut in Bollywood) – Luka Chuppi was a box office super hit. As a cinematographer after a few initial setbacks, he got the major break through comeback film of Sridevi, English Vinglish. There was no turning back after that.

Marathi hit – Tapaal (2013) was his first film as a director. He continued in Bollywood as a cinematographer and directed one more hit film in Marathi – Lalbaugchi Rani, before he turned successful as a director in Bollywood through Luka Chuppi in 2019. He has worked with some of the leading artists of India like Shah Rukh Khan, Sridevi, Irrfan Khan, Akshay Kumar and Alia Bhat, behind the cameras.

Laxman Utekar – Some interesting and less-known facts

1. As of 2019, he has no flop film as a film director. Till now he directed three hit films, 2 in Marathi and 1 in Hindi.

2. He was the cinematographer of one of the most expensive films of Hindi cinema, Blue released in 2009. The film couldn’t recover its production cost.

3. He worked as cinematographer for Akshay Kumar starrer Boss and Blue, and both were commercial failures.

4. The writer of Luka Chuppi – Rohan Ghoge has experienced a live-in relationship.

5. His directorial debut, Tapaal, was first screened at 18th Busan International Film Festival 2013.