Rai became a photographer in the mid 1960s, soon joining the staff ofThe Statesman in New Delhi. In 1976, he left the paper and became a freelance photographer.[citation needed] From 1982 until 1992, Rai was the director of photography forIndia Today.[3]
He served on the jury forWorld Press Photo from 1990 to 1997.[4][5] He is known for his books, particularlyRaghu Rai's India: Reflections in Colour andReflections in Black and White.[6][7][8][9]
Rai started learning photography in 1962 under his elder brother Sharampal Chowdhry (better known as S Paul), who is a photographer. In 1965 he joined "The Statesman" newspaper as its chief photographer.[citation needed] He and his colleagueSaeed Naqvi visited Maharishi’s ashram in the spring of 1968, whenThe Beatles arrived.[11]
Rai left "The Statesman" in 1976 to work as picture editor for "Sunday," a weekly news magazine published in Calcutta. Impressed by an exhibit of his work in Paris in 1971,Henri Cartier-Bresson nominated Rai to joinMagnum Photos in 1977.[6]
Rai left "Sunday" in 1980, and worked as a picture editor and photographer at "India Today" during its formative years. From 1982 to 1991, he worked on special issues and designs, contributing picture essays on social, political, and cultural themes.[citation needed]
ForGreenpeace, he completed an in-depth documentary project on the chemical disaster at Bhopal in 1984, which he covered as a journalist withIndia Today in 1984, and on its ongoing effects on the lives of gas victims.[citation needed] This work resulted in a book,Exposure: A Corporate Crime and three exhibitions that toured Europe, America, India and southeast Asia after 2004, the 20th anniversary of the disaster. Rai wanted the exhibition to support the many survivors through creating greater awareness, both about the tragedy, and about the victims who continue to live in the contaminated environment around Bhopal.[12]
In 2003, while on an assignment for Geo Magazine in Bombay City, he switched to using a digital camera "and from that moment to today, I haven't been able to go back to using film."[13]
In 2017, Avani Rai, his daughter followed her father on one of his trips to Kashmir to get an insight into his life and know him better. She released a documentary on this journey calledRaghu Rai: An Unframed Portrait, executive produced byAnurag Kashyap.[14]
Rai has produced more than 18 books focussing on the culture and people of India, including Raghu Rai's Delhi, The Sikhs, Calcutta, Khajuraho, Taj Mahal, Tibet in Exile, India, and Mother Teresa. His photo essays have appeared in many magazines and newspapers includingTime,Life,GEO,The New York Times,Sunday Times,Newsweek,The Independent, and theNew Yorker.[15] He has served three times on the jury of the World Press Photo, and twice on the jury of UNESCO's International Photo Contest.[5][citation needed]
