Raihan said he had shared the detailed proposal and layout of the show well in advance with the Bikaner House management. Bikaner House went ahead and took down some of the pictures.
TBS Report
22 October, 2026, 01:30 pm
Last modified: 22 October, 2026, 01:37 pm
A controversy has broken out over Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra's photographer son's exhibition at the Bikaner House near India Gate in New Delhi after he alleged that many of the pictures taken by him about recent street protests in Delhi were pulled down.
Raihan Vadra yesterday (21 October) said the Bikaner House administration pulled down many of his pictures of the recent street protests in Delhi ahead of a solo exhibition.
The show, titled "No Idea is Final", was previewed yesterday.
Raihan said he had shared the detailed proposal and layout of the show well in advance with the Bikaner House management. Bikaner House went ahead and took down some of the pictures.
He said he was told at 3.30pm that if the images are not taken down by 5pm, the show will be cancelled.
Two large rooms on the first floor of Bikaner House's CCA building were shorn of any activity as about 74 photographs were taken down a few hours ago.
A Bikaner House official said, "They were not authorised to comment".
Tagging Raihan Vadra, Priyanka Gandhi took a veiled jibe at the Modi government and said, "When someone with power becomes afraid of the expression of another, he doesn't know it, but he has already lost the very power he is trying to protect".
In her message to Raihan, Priyanka Gandhi said, "You stand for what is true, and everything beautiful will find its way to you. I am proud of you, always will be."
Speaking to PTI, Priyanka described the incident as ridiculous and an attempt to muzzle the voices of young people across the country.
"Today it's him, tomorrow it'll be another artist," she said.
Raihan maintained that none of the images "gave out any political message and only documented the protests over the last six months".
"I felt it is my duty as an Indian artist, not just because I am doing a show right now, but it is my duty as an Indian artist to document what is going on. They are censoring the work of artists; I don't know what they are scared of. They even went to the extent of removing the picture of the Indian flag," he added.
Asked why the photographs were removed, Raihan claimed the Bikaner House administration told him that, given the current context and political climate in India, it was not the right time to display the images.
He said he challenged the reasoning, arguing that political expression could not be separated from art.
"You can't say don't show political art because all art is political. There is no art without politics," he said.