MAM
Gionee elevates Deepika Singh
MUMBAI: Gionee India has promoted Deepika Singh as the director for marketing communications. Singh has been heading the company’s important communications and corporate affairs portfolio for the last one and a half years.
Singh, along with managing and directing company’s internal and external communications, will also support the company’s brand building initiatives and sales growth across regions.
Singh’s elevation comes at a time when Gionee is looking to aggressively push its current market share of five per cent upwards. Singh’s role is intended to augment the core team in strengthening brand communications and build preference and loyalty for Gionee among a fast increasing customer base. As part of Gionee’s concerted push to foster community connect, Singh will also be responsible for spearheading the company’s CSR initiatives, developing appropriate social responsibility goals and metrics and overseeing their implementation.
Gionee India Country CEO and MD Arvind R Vohra said, “We are looking to beef up our core management team in India with fresh thinking and talent that blends multiple skills and experiences. This is the year when we will focus on taking Gionee to the next level of growth, while becoming one of the most loved brands in India. I believe Deepika has all it takes to deliver on this mandate and we are excited to promote her to this new role.”
MAM
Raghu Rai passes away at 83, leaves behind iconic legacy
Padma Shri-winning photographer documented history across 5 decades.
MUMBAI: The lens may have stilled, but the stories it captured will never fade. Raghu Rai, one of India’s most celebrated photojournalists, passed away on April 26, 2026, at the age of 83. He breathed his last at a private hospital in New Delhi after battling cancer and age-related health issues.
His son, Nitin Rai, revealed that Rai had been diagnosed with prostate cancer two years ago, which later spread to the stomach and, more recently, the brain. Despite multiple rounds of treatment, his health had declined in recent months.
Born in 1942 in Jhang, Punjab (now in Pakistan), Rai entered photography in his early twenties, inspired by his elder brother, photographer S. Paul. Beginning his career in the mid-1960s, he went on to build a body of work that spanned more than five decades, contributing to global publications such as Time, Life, GEO, Le Figaro, The New York Times, Vogue, GQ and Marie Claire.
His global recognition took a decisive leap in 1977 when legendary French photographer Henri Cartier-Bresson nominated him to join Magnum Photos, placing him among the world’s most respected visual storytellers.
Rai’s lens chronicled both power and poignancy. He photographed towering figures such as Indira Gandhi, Dalai Lama, Bal Thackeray, Satyajit Ray and Mother Teresa, while also documenting defining moments like the Bhopal gas tragedy later captured in his book Exposure: A Corporate Crime.
Over the years, he published more than 18 books, building an archive that blended journalism with artistry. His contributions were recognised early when he was awarded the Padma Shri in 1972 for his coverage of the Bangladesh War and refugee crisis. In 1992, he was named “Photographer of the Year” in the United States for his work in National Geographic, and in 2009, he was honoured with the Officier des Arts et des Lettres by the French government.
Rai is survived by his wife Gurmeet, son Nitin, and daughters Lagan, Avani and Purvai. His last rites will be held at Lodhi Cremation Ground in New Delhi at 4 pm on Sunday.
With his passing, Indian photojournalism loses not just a pioneer, but a patient observer of history, one frame at a time.
