Raghu Rai @ The Hindu Lit Fest 2016
Raghu Rai is a popular photo journalist who started clicking photos (initially) because his brother was into it and he had nothing else to do! Raghu Rai was in conversation with Sadanand Menon today at the Hindu Lit Fest, 2016 @ Chennai. Here are some highlights.
- He went to Bhopal on the next day of the Bhopal gas tragedy, risking his life as the ground was still holding the poisonous gas – to take pictures!
- When he went to cover the Babri Masjid demolition, his son was beaten badly by the mob and had to be hospitalized. When he went to the hospital in the evening, he had to lift every bed-sheet to identify his son.
- He smuggled a camera into the Golden Temple during the insurgency, posing as a devotee carrying flowers. This, when the general public were banned from entering its premises.
How is that for experience?
Now for some quotes:
“Go with your intuition; nature and situations will automatically favor you.”
“Each image should show a darshan of life.”
“History can be written and rewritten. But photo-history can never be rewritten.”
“Change is inevitable in any art form.”
“Audience Q: What’s your most memorable photo?
A: The one yet to come.”
Raghu Rai runs a photography magazine called, “Creative Image”; and has published many books including, “India Through the Eyes of Raghu Rai”, in which he has published some of his best photos – all taken using a mobile camera!
Destination Infinity