[Photo essay] Documenting Indian journalism in the 20th century

In early 2015, the esteemed former general manager and iconic photo editor of the Time-Life News Service’s South Asia bureau, Deepak Puri, donated his historic collection of photographs to the Museum of Art & Photography, MAP, in Bangalore. One of the most important archives of 20th century journalism in the country, this collection of over 150 photographs includes some of the best practitioners of the documentary aesthetic. In collaboration with Tasveer, as part of its 10th anniversary celebrations, this exhibition — a selection from the larger collection — will make these photographs available for public viewing for the first time.

Of the virtuoso, tales of whose exploits fill books and still circulate in high-powered circles around the world, British author Pico Iyer writes in his book The Open Road (2008) — the “great and legendary office manager of Time’s New Delhi bureau... who seems to hold up much of the Time-Life empire and, I sometimes suspect, most of India single-handedly”. Representing the heart of Time Asia for a whole host of people, Deepak Puri was a wizard who made the impossible real, and ensured that the world saw the work of many photographic geniuses from Mary Ellen Mark to Raghubir Singh. His collection bears testimony to both the friendship and gratitude of several photographers, whose work he enabled and whose lives he touched.

Culled from this collection, Legacy of Photojournalism includes a selection of works from thirty photographers, including internationally acclaimed seminal photojournalists such as James Nachtwey, Sebastião Salgado and Raghu Rai, to name but a few.

(Press release)