Ace Photojournalists 5 | S.Paul

Ace Photojournalists 5 | 
On the occasion of World Photography Day (19 Aug.) I am writing short bio profile of great photojournalists. Fifth in the series, read about one of the finest photojournalists of India: S. Paul, who inspired a generation of young photojournalists including his younger brother Raghu Rai.

S.Paul

S. Paul (1930-2017) was one of the finest photojournalists that India has produced. He was the first Indian to be profiled by The British Journal of Photography in 1967. In 1971, he became the first Indian to win the Nikon International Photo Contest. In 2004, B&W Magazine US nicknamed him “the Henry Cartier- Bresson of India’. Three years in the making (2004–07) and selected by 47 top judges, The World’s Greatest Black & White Photography book has carried five of his pictures.

Originally from Pakistan, he came to India after the separation of the country and settled at Shimla with his elder brother. Photography was his passion. He started working as an engineering draftsman, but his passion ultimately became his profession when his photographs were published in International magazines and he was offered a job at Indian Express. He worked for 26 years as the Chief of Photography department of Indian Express

Paul’s younger brother, Raghu Rai, also landed up in Delhi, and, mentored by Paul, became a photographer who made his own mark starting out in The Statesman. 

Paul was a prolific photographer. He took some of the most haunting photographs of his times.

Delhi-based photographer and activist Ram Rahman wrote about him, “He would photograph flowers, trees, birds, the clouds, landscapes, portraits, the street. But his forte was to catch the little detail and human foible in people. His pictures of people had an affection and warmth which led me to call him a humanist photographer in my lectures. As with many photographers, he was maybe not the best editor and judge of his own photographs the newest always being the best.”