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Kanu Gandhi — featured artwork

Introduction

Kanu Gandhi, the grandnephew of Mahatma Gandhi, spent his early years at Sabarmati Ashram and documented rare and intimate moments from the last ten years of Gandhiji’s life. In 1934, he moved to Sevagram Ashram near Wardha, following the footsteps of Mahatma Gandhi. Kanu, persuaded by his father, was to join the personal staff at Sevagram supervising clerical and accounting functions. It was here that he developed an interest in photography around 1936. Encouraged by Shivaji Bhave, Vinobha Bhave’s brother, Kanu sought permission from Mahatma Gandhi to document ashram life. Initially hesitant due to financial constraints, Gandhiji later facilitated the purchase of a Rolliflex camera for Kanu through the aid of industrialist Ghanshyam Das Birla. Birla made a gift of Rs. 100 to Kanu, enough to purchase the camera. Gandhiji placed three conditions on Kanu’s photography: no use of flash, no posed photographs, and no financial support from the Ashram.
Adhering to these guidelines, Kanu captured daily moments of Gandhiji’s life, producing a significant visual archive. However, he refrained from photographing certain personal moments, such as when Kasturba Gandhi was on her deathbed at the Agha Khan Palace in Pune. Following Gandhiji’s assassination in 1948, Kanu’s photographic pursuits diminished. He passed away in February 1986.
Date of Birth
1917
Date of Death
20 Feb 1986
Age
69
Place of Birth
Wardha, Maharashtra, India
Place of Death
Madhya Pradesh, India
State Country of Birth
India
State Country of Death
India

Research Centre

Posts 1

  1. SWARAJ - Revisualising India's Political History
    "What does 𝗦𝘄𝗮𝗿𝗮𝗷 truly mean? Is freedom achieved at a single historic moment or period, or must self-rule be continually imagined, questioned and renewed? India's journey towards Swaraj was shaped not by one voice or one path, but through reform and resistance, revolution and non-violence, political thought, public protest, art, print, photography, cinema and the collective will of its people. The Tuli Research Centre for India Studies (T.R.I.S.) presents 𝗦𝗪𝗔𝗥𝗔𝗝: 𝗥𝗲𝘃𝗶𝘀𝘂𝗮𝗹𝗶𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗜𝗻𝗱𝗶𝗮'𝘀 𝗣𝗼𝗹𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗰𝗮𝗹 𝗛𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘆, a pioneering exhibition curated by Neville Tuli. Bringing together rare artworks, prints, photographs, books, film publicity art, political propaganda and visual-textual-audio archives, SWARAJ traces India's complex journey towards political self-rule and self-discovery. From early European coastal encounters, the Bengal Renaissance and the First War of Independence in 1857 to the rise of Bharat Mata, the Tiranga, Gandhiji's inspired satyagraha, civil disobedience and mass mobilisation, the exhibition explores how the idea of India was envisioned, contested and transformed. It journeys through revolutionary movements and non-violence, subaltern uprisings, the Partition, the Constitution, the integration of the Princely States, the Emergency, wars, civic dissent and people's protests. It also foregrounds the vital role of artists, photographers, publishers, newspapers, journals, cartoons and cinema in recording and shaping the nation's political consciousness. SWARAJ invites us to encounter history not as something distant or settled, but as a daily living inheritance that continues to influence who we are and how we understand freedom, identity, and ourselves today. Watch the video for a glimpse into this expansive visual journey, and follow the exhibition as it revisualises India's political history through art, image, text and sound.

Calendar 3

  1. SWARAJ - Revisualising India's Political History
    UpcomingExhibitionProject 81
    SWARAJ - Revisualising India's Political History
    An Exhibition of Modern & Contemporary Fine & Popular Arts, Photography, Film Memorabilia and Visual-Textual-Audio Archive
    12th - 16th August 2026
    10:00 AM - 7:00 PM
    Visual Arts Gallery, India Habitat Centre, Lodhi Road, New Delhi,
    The Tuli Research Centre for India Studies (T.R.I.S.) announces its seventh exhibition. “Swaraj – Revisualising India's Political History” -- An exhibition of Modern and Contemporary Fine and Popular Arts, Photography, Film Memorabilia and Visual-Textual-Audio Archives. Swaraj will open at 6 p.m. on Wednesday, 12 August 2026 at the Visual Arts Gallery and will remain open till 7 p.m. Sunday, 16 August 2026. Tuli Research Centre for India Studies (T.R.I.S.) presents SWARAJ | Revisualising India's Political History, a pioneering inter-disciplinary offline-online exhibition conceptualised and curated by Neville Tuli with Team T.R.I.S.. SWARAJ explores India's journey towards political self-rule and self-discovery through a remarkable collection of rare modern and contemporary fine and popular arts, albums, photographs, books, prints, propaganda, cartoons, film publicity artworks and other "text-visual-audio" archives contextualised within a clear historical framework, which defines T.R.I.S.' pedagogic approach to learning. The Exhibition will be of particular interest to students and scholars of India & Cultural Studies, and India's political and modern histories as well as those interested in the passage of events and ideas from the mid-1850s leading up to the turn of the 21st century. Unique to the Tuli Research Centre for India Studies is the richness of visual material that not only exhorts a deeper understanding of the art and archival materials on display but also brings alive the multi-layered narratives of the exhibition and naturally India's journey in being ad searching for herself.
    Read More →
    +16 more
  2. SWARAJ - Revisualising India's Political History
    UpcomingOpening PreviewProject 82
    SWARAJ - Revisualising India's Political History
    An Exhibition of Modern & Contemporary Fine & Popular Arts, Photography, Film Memorabilia and Visual-Textual-Audio Archive
    12th August 2026
    6:00 PM - 9:00 PM
    Visual Arts Gallery, India Habitat Centre, Lodhi Road, New Delhi,
    The Tuli Research Centre for India Studies (T.R.I.S.) announces its seventh exhibition. “Swaraj – Revisualising India's Political History” -- An exhibition of Modern and Contemporary Fine and Popular Arts, Photography, Film Memorabilia and Visual-Textual-Audio Archives. Swaraj will open at 6 p.m. on Wednesday, 12 August 2026 at the Visual Arts Gallery and will remain open till 7 p.m. Sunday, 16 August 2026. Tuli Research Centre for India Studies (T.R.I.S.) presents SWARAJ | Revisualising India's Political History, a pioneering inter-disciplinary offline-online exhibition conceptualised and curated by Neville Tuli with Team T.R.I.S.. SWARAJ explores India's journey towards political self-rule and self-discovery through a remarkable collection of rare modern and contemporary fine and popular arts, albums, photographs, books, prints, propaganda, cartoons, film publicity artworks and other "text-visual-audio" archives contextualised within a clear historical framework, which defines T.R.I.S.' pedagogic approach to learning. The Exhibition will be of particular interest to students and scholars of India & Cultural Studies, and India's political and modern histories as well as those interested in the passage of events and ideas from the mid-1850s leading up to the turn of the 21st century. Unique to the Tuli Research Centre for India Studies is the richness of visual material that not only exhorts a deeper understanding of the art and archival materials on display but also brings alive the multi-layered narratives of the exhibition and naturally India's journey in being ad searching for herself.
    Read More →
    +16 more
  3. Self Discover via Rediscovering India Series Part III History of Photography in India
    ArchivedExhibitionProject 3
    Self Discover via Rediscovering India Series Part III History of Photography in India
    21st - 31st January 2025
    Self Discover via Rediscovering India Series Part III
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    +28 more