Jaywant Pathare (1921-1998) was a well-regarded cinematographer whose career spanned four decades (1950s to 1990s) in Hindi films. He is most known for his long collaboration with Hrishikesh Mukherjee, for whom he shot acclaimed films such as Anari (1959), Anupama (1966), Anand (1971), Guddi (1971), Mili (1975), Chupke Chupke (1975), Golmaal (1979), and Khoobsurat (1980).
Pathare started his career assisting cinematography stalwarts such as Jal Mistry (Barsaat, 1949), V. N. Reddy (Hulchul, 1951) and Radhu Karmakar (Awara, 1951). He went on to work with Raj Kapoor's R.K. Studios as the principal cinematographer for Aah (1953) and Ab Dilli Door Nahin (1957). In 1959, he started working with Hrishikesh Mukherjee's Anari, and a long creative partnership began between the two. Pathare served as a cinematographer in almost all of Mukherjee's Hindi films. He won his first Filmfare Award for best cinematography (black & white category) for his monochrome visuals in Anupama (1966). With Satyakam (1969), he shifted to colour. For his work with Mukherjee, known for his light-hearted and sentimental character-driven films that departed from the glamorous aesthetic of Bombay cinema, Pathare moved away from the style of R.K. studios that he started with and created a subtle, austere camera presence that focused on the characters' emotional arcs. For instance, in films like Guddi, Mili and Anand, he did away with dramatic lighting to let the characters embed in the environment while highlighting their interiority. He won his second Filmfare Award for Bemisal (1982).