Tata Elxsi creates a Dhoom!
November 20, 2006

Visual Computing Labs (VCL) of Tata Elxsi, the technology arm of the Tata Group, has created a special effects treat for Indian cinema with over 40 minutes of VFX in the film Dhoom 2, the latest blockbuster from the Yash Raj Films released recently. This project is one of VCL's biggest Indian feature project for the Indian market to date, in terms of scope, length of work and complexity.

In what is a first for the mainstream Indian feature film industry, VCL has done the pre-visualising for all the action scenes that appear in the film. Over 40 minutes of VFX (in a 147 minute feature) includes pre-visualisation of all the action sequences, high-level compositing, 3D Virtual 'Set' creation, 3D character animation, CG model building and some of the most complex wire and rig removal ever.

Dhoom 2 is fast paced action-packed thriller directed by Sanjay Gadhvi. The movie is a sequel to the 2004 blockbuster, Dhoom. It stars Hrithik Roshan, Abhishek Bachchan, Aishwarya Rai, Bipasha Basu and Uday Chopra in pivotal roles. Dhoom 2 is expected to be one of the slickest and well-packaged movies on par with a Hollywood action thriller. Hrithik Roshan will be seen doing roller-blading, skydiving, sand boarding, snow boarding, jumping off a cliff (with Aishwarya) and various other extreme sports in this movie. The movie has been dubbed in Telugu and Tamil languages as well.

Describing Tata Elxsi's role in detail, Pankaj Khandpur, creative director, Visual Computing Labs, Tata Elxsi, said, "In collaboration with the director, action director, and cinematographer, the team in the Visual Computing Labs actually converted traditional paper-based storyboards into real-time, full length 3D animated sequences, which were then edited to give the director and action director an exact sense of all of the action. Camera information, angles and lenses were available to the cinematographer before he actually shot the scenes. The process was spread over a year, and no sequence was shot until all parties signed-off on the pre-visualization. Thus, exact cinematic impact and length was known before the shoot, resulting in huge production savings for the producers of the film".

In another first, the 'Fort Heist' sequence in the first-half of the film is notable in that there was no fort at the time of shoot! A small 16 ft x 16 ft terrace, 12 ft high was the only set actually built; VCL's team then virtually 'created', in computer graphics (CG), the entire palace, fort and walls that appear in the entire sequence, and added them digitally to the live-action. The 'city' that appears far below the fort is also a digital creation, adding depth and size to the entire sequence. Thus, Aishwarya's 200 ft climb up to the top of the fort was actually a climb of 12 ft, and the final Hrithik/Aishwarya leap out over a 300 ft drop to the city far below was also a safe 12 ft drop! Once again, huge savings on set building. VCL is proud to have pioneered this 'virtual-set' methodology for Indian Cinema.

K Chandrasekhar, general manager, Visual Computing Labs, Tata Elxsi, stated, "We are delighted at this opportunity to bring in some of the techniques and art that we have been using for our Hollywood projects in an Indian movie. The work undertaken on Dhoom 2 is unsurpassed in every area ie, pre-visualisation, 3D virtual 'set' creation and character animation, CG model building and wire and rig removal."

Other interesting VFX samples in the film were the creation in CG, of some of the 'gadgets' used in the film: the robotic arm from the remote-controlled miniature 'car' that steals the diamond (including the diamond!), is computer-generated, as are the 'mechanical' insects that are released to create a diversion during the 'Coin-Heist' in the second half of the film. The 'wire person-puller' and 'magnetic attacher' as wrist-gadgets were also a combination of real and CGI imagery!

An interesting last-minute inclusion was the CGI helicopter rotor-blades on the police chopper that lands in front of the tunnel in the climax. The actual helicopter model was a scale wooden dummy, with huge rotor-blades that fell off because of their weight, just before the shoot could begin! VCL then created the rotor-blades for all the shots, including the incredible one where Hrithik and Aishwarya leap on their bike over whirling helicopter blades, and just miss them, dangerously close! Of course, there were no rotor-blades at the time of shoot; it was VCL magic at work!

In the same climax sequence, for some shots that had a severe under-exposure problem, VCL had to re-shoot elements of a truck, car-ramp, car etc, build parts of the tunnel and roadway, and re-build some shots to fit with the rest, to keep the story-telling narrative intact.

Apart from countless sparks, gunshots, smoke, metal-eating CG 'acid' that helped Hrithik make a getaway via a manhole, VCL worked on over 200 of the most complicated wire-removal and rig-removal shots ever; wires and rigs that 'helped' all characters perform their 'death-defying' action acts, be it leaping over cliffs, bursting out of man-holes, jumping into deep waterfalls, performing atop moving trains, fighting while parachuting, or leaping on bikes across boats, cars, helicopters, and roller-blading at high speeds across the streets of Bombay!

About Visual Computing Labs
Visual Computing Labs, a division of Tata Elxsi, is a creative facility offering animation, gaming and special effects for the global entertainment and broadcast industry. Headquartered in Bangalore, Visual Computing Labs is a unique mix of engineering and creative skills, which provides solutions from scripting, pre / post production, character modelling and animation, VFX and development services among others.