RAISING RAI: WHERE THE MAGIC HAPPENS

Raghu and Avani Rai on connecting via worlds seen through their lenses.

- Julian Manning

Raghu Rai, who started off as a photographer in a newspaper, has given us some of the most powerful captures of life in the subcontinent. For nearly six decades, his lens has framed not only the never-before-seen glimpses of people like Mother Teresa and Dalai Lama but also incidents like the Bhopal gas tragedy along with everyday life in India. His daughter, Avani Rai, has charted her own course with a camera, earning his respect through her grit and determination. In 2017, Avani made a documentary, Raghu Rai: An Unframed Portrait, which captured her father in a new light and led to them starting a new journey as a father-daughter photographer duo. Here, they tell CNT what it took to get there. Edited excerpts from the interview:

THE MENTOR AND THE MENTEE

RR: I never forced my children to become photographers but, of the four, my son. Nitin, and daughter, Avani, chose this path for themselves. I had no issues with my other two daughters, who aren't interested in photography, and had all the problems with Nitin and Avani. A lot of that has to do with my restlessness; I wanted them to immediately imbibe the level of sensitivity and creativity I've honed for decades. But gradually, I've understood their world and my world, and a way for the two to meet.