Ray's Pather Panchali (1955). He is credited as being one among the earliest filmmakers to bring "naturalism" in Tamil cinema in the 1970s. He usually photographed, scripted and edited all his films. His films were characterised by strong "visual appeal" and minimal number of characters. A majority of his films centre on the complexity of human relationships and are known to portray women as strong characters. Although influenced by realism, his films Moodu Pani, Rettai Vaal Kuruvi and Julie Ganapathi heavily borrowed from American cinema. Mahendra was equally praised for his cinematography and directorial finesse. Described by the media as "one of the finest cinematographers of Indian cinema", he was among the first to pioneer innovative colour in South India. Subrata Mitra, Satyajit Ray's cinematographer, presented a viewfinder to Mahendra acknowledging his talent. Fellow cinematographer Madhu Ambat described that it was Mahendra who gave "fame" to those cameramen who came out of the FTII, and further noted that he was one of the few film-makers who effectively used romantic realism. Lauded for usage of "natural lighting", Mahendra was considered "one of the few filmmakers in Tamil who believes in telling a story visually". Kamal Haasan described that he was one of the few directors who balanced between art and popular cinema. As a film-maker, he inspired contemporary actors and film-makers such as Mani Ratnam, Kamal Haasan and Sripriya, He has mentored next generation film-makers including Bala, Ameer, Vetrimaaran, Ram and Seenu Ramasamy. Cinematographers like Santosh Sivan, Ravi K. Chandran, Natarajan Subramaniam and K. V. Anand have taken inspirations from him. The negatives of his acclaimed films—Moodu Pani, Veedu, Sandhya Raagam, Marupadiyum and Sathi Leelavathi—are lost. Collaboration With Ilaiyaraja Balu Mahendra totally directed 23 films, in 5 languages. Except the 1st two films, he collaborated with Ilaiyaraja consecutively, for 21 films. He intended to collaborate with Raja in the 6 films, that he had already conceived, before icy death snatched him away. While other directors never used Ilaiyaraja for their Hindi remakes, Balu Mahendra was steadfast in persisting with Ilaiyaraja, in all the languages. Their equation was symbiotic & synergetic, with Ilaiyaraja, unfailingly churning out enviable chart busters, for Balu Mahendra. An exceptional highlight of their creative bonding being, the eternal superhit Thumbi Vaa ..... from Olangal-1982, was used by them 5 times, in 4 languages [Mal-1, Tamizh-2, Tel-1 & Hin-1, apart from in Paa by R. Balki & a Vocal-Orchestra