REMEMBERING NITIN CHANDRAKANT DESAI

DEVESH SHARMA OFFERS A SHORT PROFILE OF THE PROLIFIC ART DIRECTOR WHO PASSED AWAY RECENTLY

- DEVESH SHARMA

(August 9, 1965 - August 2, 2023)

Born in Mumbai, Nitin Desai embarked on his journey in the Indian film industry in 1987. Known for his attention to detail and creativity, he became one of the most sought-after art directors, creating mesmerising sets and designs. He began his career with TV series, joining noted art director, Nitish Roy as a fourth assistant for the period TV serial, Tamas (1987), directed by Govind Nihalani. Thereafter he worked on TV projects for many years. His other famous series during this period was Chanakya, where he was the assistant for the first 25 episodes, and then took over independently from the 26th episode onwards.

His first feature film was Adhikari Brothers’ Bhookamp in 1993, but it was Vidhu Vinod Chopra’s period film, 1942: A Love Story in 1994 that got him noticed. Over the years his work in Hindi films such as Parinda (1989), Maachis (1996), Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar (2000), Devdas (2002) and international projects like Salaam Bombay!, (1998) and Kama Sutra: A Tale of Love (1996), and Such A Long Journey (1998), Holy Smoke! and Slumdog Millionaire (2008), cemented his position as one of the best art directors in town.