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World Photography Day | Lensman Rakesh Sinha: Awards mean that you and your art are still relevant
After more than five decades in photography, Rakesh Sinha celebrates his Sangeet Natak Akademi Award
A cultural photographer for over 55 years, Rakesh Sinha has led a dual life for much of his career. While he held a technical day job at Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL), he nurtured a lifelong passion as a freelance photographer in the evenings.
Reflecting on his recent Sangeet Natak Akademi Award by President Droupadi Murmu for 2025, Sinha says, “As I complete almost over five decades in the field of photography, receiving the prestigious honour in the Art Photography (Overall Contribution / Cultural Photography) category is an honour. Awards always mean that you and your art are still relevant. And that matters the most.”
He started photography in the early 1970s and captured his first event photo as a 15-year-old. He recalls the milestone of photographing the legendary Pandit Mallikarjun Mansur back in 1976. “After clicking the legend 50 years ago to clicking vocalist Ashwini Bhide Deshpande in 2026, it is like coming of age for me. The shift from manual 35mm Single-Lens Reflex (SLR) cameras with black-and-white film rolls to much faster and easier DSLRs today; it has been a journey of sorts for me,” says Sinha.
Celebrating World Photography Day, the veteran looks back on the evolution of his craft. “I remember following my brother to events with those old-world cameras. It was disheartening when the entire reel would get spoiled which was a common thing with the photographers in those days. The last roll I developed was in 2004 and after that it has been a digital era that made photography a bit more swift.”
On the current trend of mobile photography, Sinha emphasises the discipline behind the art: “There is no competition, a professional’s concentration, patience. Like if a performance is happening after much waiting and patience, you get one perfect click that has accurate light, mood and a defined pose. Lagatar focus karna padta hain, aap public ko ya artist ko zara bhi pareshan nahin kar sakte, these etiquettes too are essentially important, yeh sab ke bas ki baat nahin hain.”
Having devoted his life to documenting countless performances, from the nostalgic grain of black-and-white film to the digital era, Sinha is now working to preserve his legacy. With a massive archive that includes hundreds of classical singers and thousands of dancers and instrumentalists, he is currently curating his work into a series of books. “The collection is huge. I have over 300 hundred pics of classical singers. Then, dancers and other instrumentalists will be in the 1000s. Isko ek kitab mein lana impossible hain so I plan a volume and I am working towards it already.”
