From Bollywood to Netflix — My VFX Journey
Every VFX artist has an origin story. Mine started in a cramped Mumbai apartment with a cracked copy of After Effects and a dream that felt impossibly far away.
The Early Days
I didn't go to film school. I learned by breaking things — importing footage that was too heavy for my laptop, crashing Nuke mid-render, and spending nights on forums figuring out why my roto edges looked like they were cut with safety scissors.
The first real gig was a local music video. No budget, no brief, just a singer who wanted "something cool" behind him. I keyed him onto a rooftop that didn't exist and added particle effects that, looking back, were terrible. But it shipped. And that changed everything.
Finding My Lane
VFX is broad. You can be a generalist forever, or you can pick a lane and go deep. I chose compositing — the final layer where everything comes together. Cleanup, integration, color, atmosphere. If the compositor does their job right, you never notice.
That focus opened doors. Music videos led to commercials. Commercials led to bigger artists. Bigger artists led to projects with real budgets and real expectations.
The Netflix Moment
The first time I saw my work on a Netflix show, I was on a flight. Pulled it up on the tiny seat-back screen, and there it was — a shot I'd spent three days on, playing for millions of people who'd never know my name. That's compositing. Invisible by design.
What I've Learned
Three things matter more than talent:
What's Next
I'm deep into 3D now — Unreal Engine, Blender, Houdini. The line between VFX and real-time is dissolving. Music videos that used to need a green screen stage can now be shot in a virtual production volume. That's where the industry is heading, and that's where I want to be.
If you're starting out: pick something, get obsessed, ship work. The portfolio speaks louder than the resume.