Vikash Nowlakha is a cinematographer and filmmaker known for his gritty, raw, and stylised aesthetic. He has worked as a director of photography for feature films like ' (2009), Laapataa Ladies (2024), and Dhurandhar (2025). In addition to his work in films, he has also shot TV commercials worldwide for the New York Knicks, Nike Jordan, Maserati, BMW, Fevicol and Ambuja Cements and various other International brands, which have garnered several awards and accolades.
Vikash Nowlakha graduated in Philosophy from the University of Tasmania (1997). In 2001, he enrolled at the New York Film Academy to study cinematography.
Nowlakha began his professional journey in the film industry in 1997 after moving to Mumbai, where he took up his first role as an assistant director at an advertising production house.
In the late 1990s, he served as a producer at MTV, which sparked his interest in visual storytelling.
Over the following decade, he built experience in commercial filmmaking. His early work primarily involved television commercials for international automotive brands including Maserati, BMW, Buick, Chevrolet, Yamaha, Lexus, Honda, Ã Â koda, Vespa and Fiat, as well as campaigns for Nike, Adidas, Fevicol, Ambuja Cements, and the NBA team New York Knicks.
Nowlakha gained wider recognition in 2009 with the film ', directed by Shimit Amin.
After a period largely focused on advertising, he returned to major long-form projects with the documentary The Year Earth Changed (2021), narrated by David Attenborough. In 2022, he worked on the BBC series The Green Planet, the Hindi web series Bloody Brothers, and the fantasy film , directed by Ayan Mukerji.
In 2024, he served as director of photography for Laapataa Ladies, directed by Kiran Rao. For his work on the film, he received the Best Cinematography award at the 2025 Zee Cine Awards and a nomination at the 70th Filmfare Awards. The film was selected as the Indian entry for the Best International Feature Film for the 97th Academy Awards.
In 2025, he received critical acclaim for his cinematography on Dhurandhar - the highest-grossing Hindi film in India as of 2026, and is also credited on its sequel ' (2026).