Curator V
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An elephant pushes a loaded railroad car onto the tracks in Assam (1945)
A boxcar, likely filed with tea for freight transport is loaded onto the track. The elephant is used to remove the need for a shunting engine. More about this practice can be learnt here: When elephants were on the payroll of Indian Railways – TOI Even more interesting than the use of the elephants is [Continue Reading]
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US President Jimmy Carter is welcomed to India with a Guard of Honour (1978)
In this photo, we see US President Jimmy Carter on his first and only visit to India, slightly startled by an Indian officer from the Guard of Honour presenting his sword. Jimmy Carter was the third US President to visit India, and the first after the breakdown of the Indo-US relationship during the 1971 war. [Continue Reading]
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Farmer stands amidst and inspects his bumper crop of wheat in Punjab (1965)
This photograph, taken in October 1965, depicts a farmer from Punjab standing amidst a flourishing wheat field. The image captures a moment of quiet pride and connection to the land despite the amount of hard work and dedication required. Year Source 1965 AP Photo Source Caption: The Kidian “Kisan,” or farmer, stands in a bumper [Continue Reading]
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Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi and wife, Sonia Gandhi, arrive in Delhi after their first state visit to the USSR (1985)
Rajiv Gandhi, early in his term as Prime Minister opted to visit the USSR for his first official state visit. In this photo, he returns to Delhi, jubilant after an extremely successful visit. Rajiv Gandhi and Gorbachev had a close and productive relationship, meeting each other 7 times. Learn more here. Another interesting bit of history [Continue Reading]
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Atal Bihari Vajpayee moments after submitting his resignation as Prime Minister, 13 days after being sworn in (1996)
Most Indian Prime Ministers that we see through their iconic photographs show a distinct personality. With Nehru, the photos show an aristocrat. With Indira Gandhi, the photos radiate a distinct sense of power. With Vajpayee however, the images always show a statesman. This one is no exception, showing a veteran politician taking an extremely bitter [Continue Reading]
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Indian Troops charge a Pakistani Post in the Khem Karan-Kasur Sector on the Lahore Front (1965)
This photo shows Indian troops charging at a Pakistani post in Kasur, a township on the Lahore Front. If the date in the caption and location is to be believed, these are likely troops of the XI Corps during the push towards Lahore from September 9th onwards. Fighting at Kasur was intense, with a large [Continue Reading]
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Maharaja of Jaipur, Man Singh II, arrives in England by Flying Boat to attend the London Victory Day Celebrations (1946)
In this photo we see, from left to right, Raoraja Abhey Singh, ADC to the Maharaja, the maharaja’s two sons, the Maharaja of Jaipur and a Traffic Assistant of the British Overseas Airways Corporation. The Maharaja is in his uniform, as he served in the British Indian Army during WW2. He was the first to [Continue Reading]
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Indira Gandhi with Queen Elizabeth II during the Queen’s second visit to India (1983)
This photo from Queen Elizabeth’s second visit to Independent India stands out, not because of the Queen herself, but because of then prime minister Indira Gandhi, whose subtle side-eye directed at the Queen adds dramatic flair to an otherwise basic photo op. One can only wonder which of the numerous historic infractions of the British [Continue Reading]
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Imperial Police arrests members of the Bombay Provincial Congress Committee after they refuse to disband (1932)
An interesting photo where we see young and charismatic members of the “eight war council of the Bombay Provincial Congress Committee” being arrested after refusing to disband their meeting. The image depicts a diverse group of characters, including an Imperial police officer in a sharp white colonial uniform, forcefully dragging a man into a van. [Continue Reading]
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Colonial era Dhobi irons various Clothes using a Charcoal Iron (1860-1870)
This Carte de Visite taken around 1860-1870 by Bourne and Shepherd Photographers, is part of a series of portraits that were taken to archive the various ethnic types and occupations of the world. Surprisingly, you can still find original copies of this photograph, likely from the original printing run, for sale here. This photograph can [Continue Reading]
