MAM
CavinKare Ability Awards for achievers with disabilities
MUMBAI: The CavinKare Ability Awards ceremony recognized and honoured three people who have done just that.
A press release states that this ‘one of a kind’ award has been instituted to celebrate the outstanding achievements of a few disabled people who have proved that disability is all in the mind and one can achieve anything through determination and commitment.
An eminent jury selected the winners from a short-listed 13 after the meticulous evaluation of about 170 applicants. The panel of judges included Javed Akhtar, Maniratnam, N Vittal, Mohini Giri and Jayshree Ravindran. Justice A.S Anand, Chairman, National Human Rights Commission, presented the Awards at an award ceremony on 16 March 2003.
The winners were: Naseema Mohamed Amin Hurzuk from Kohlapur was honored with the CavinKare Ability Award for Eminence for her contribution to the disabled community through her NGO, “Helpers of The Handicapped”. A paraplegic from the age of 16, she is the role model and icon for many like her who nurture the dream of living a normal, independent life in main stream society, says a release.
Through her organization, Naseema has rehabilitated over 8,000 physically handicapped children with medical aid and vocational training. Among other activities, she runs an integrated school, hostel and cooperative credit society, adds the release.
The release says that Buse Gowda, the first blind person to learn classical dance, was one of the recipients of the CavinKare Ability Mastery Award. He is now part of a dance troupe called Natyanjalliand has given over a thousand dance performances, both in India and abroad. In 1996, he was the first blind person to successfully complete a two-hour ‘ranga pravesham’. Hailing from Bangalore, he also runs his own travel agency.
The release also states Pradeep Sinha, a deaf-blind person from Mumbai, was the other awardee for the CavinKare Ability Mastery Award. For one who can neither hear, speak nor see, he has come a long way to become an assistant at a Braille press and a trained masseuse. He even trains other handicapped children at the Braille press. He is proficient with the computer, lives independently and commutes everyday by bus to his place of work all alone.
The release says that each life story was indeed a window to the daily battles faced by persons with disabilities and how these can be overcome. Their accomplishments have been particularly noteworthy and of inestimable value and have set a fine example to the entire public domain. The winners have demonstrated what others could wish to emulate. Choosing realistic career options, enjoying healthy lifestyles and leading normal lives to make them more that just a face in the crowd.
The release also adds that CavinKare, a consumer products company, along with Ability Foundation, an NGO working to integrate persons with disability into main stream society, have instituted these awards in association with The New Indian Express Group of Publications and EventXpress, a frontline event management firm, to celebrate the exemplary spirit of that rare breed of individuals who have risen above their disabilities and displayed that attitude is everything.
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.
