Raghu Rai
1942–2026 · India
Describing the lives and upheavals of India.
The story
Raghu Rai began photography after training as an engineer and built an extensive documentary body of work on India. Portraits, streets and political events sit alongside the consequences of the Bhopal disaster. His relationship with Magnum accompanied a career in the press and in books. From crowds to isolated figures, his compositions seek to convey several dimensions of a human and historical situation within one visual space.
Understanding the work
Identify the actions within the frame. Place images of events in context and compare them with ordinary scenes: the same visual density can serve very different narratives and concerns.
Key works and series
Bhopal; portraits of Mother Teresa; scenes of Delhi and Calcutta.
Sources & further exploration
Works in collections.
3 recordsPhotographs to explore on museum and library websites, with titles, dates and processes. Each link opens the collection record and its image where one is available.
