Rajiv Gandhi’s 1966 photograph of Sonia in Turin, Italy, appears on the front cover of Belonging: A Journey of Love, while a portrait taken by Raihan Vadra and Aviva Baig in Delhi in 2026 features on the back.
The memoir, published by HarperCollins India and released on November 10, traces Sonia Gandhi’s journey from Italy to India, her marriage to Rajiv Gandhi and her entry into public life.
Raihan’s contribution comes weeks after his exhibition No Idea Is Final at Delhi’s Bikaner House became embroiled in a dispute over the reported removal or replacement of photographs depicting student and youth protests.
Sonia Gandhi’s Memoir: Raihan Vadra, Aviva Baig Photograph Back Cover, 60 Years After Rajiv’s Portrait
Sonia Gandhi’s memoir features a back-cover portrait taken by her grandson Raihan Vadra and his fiancée Aviva Baig, echoing the 1966 photograph of her taken by Rajiv Gandhi on the front cover
Summary
A photograph taken by Congress leader Sonia Gandhi’s grandson Raihan Vadra and his fiancée Aviva Baig features on the back cover of her newly released memoir, Belonging: A Journey of Love, creating a family connection with the image of her late husband Rajiv Gandhi on the front cover. The two photographs, taken six decades apart, frame the memoir through the work of two generations of the Gandhi family.
The front-cover photograph was taken by Rajiv Gandhi in Turin, Italy, in 1966, when Sonia was 20 years old. The back-cover portrait was captured in Delhi in 2026 by Raihan and Baig. The contrast brings together two stages of her life: her early years with Rajiv in Italy and her later life as a senior political figure and the matriarch of the Nehru-Gandhi family.
The detail was highlighted by India Today on Friday, November 13, in a report on the couple's contribution to the memoir. The book, published by HarperCollins India, was released on November 10 and recounts Gandhi's personal journey from Italy to India, her marriage to Rajiv and her eventual entry into public life.
Two Photographs Connect Three Generations Of The Gandhi Family
The memoir's front-cover photograph was taken in Turin in 1966, before Sonia Gandhi married Rajiv and moved to India. Rajiv, who was then her future husband, had a longstanding interest in photography. The image offers a glimpse of the couple's life before he entered politics and became Prime Minister.
The back-cover photograph, taken 60 years later, features Sonia in a saree, smiling at the camera. Raihan, the son of Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and businessman Robert Vadra, is a visual artist and photographer. His work includes wildlife, street and commercial photography.
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Baig is a Delhi-based photographer and creative professional who co-founded Atelier 11, a photography studio and production company. The couple got engaged in December 2025 after dating for several years.
Raihan Vadra’s Photography And Recent Exhibition Controversy
Raihan's contribution to the memoir comes amid growing public attention around his photography. In October, his solo exhibition, No Idea Is Final, at Delhi's Bikaner House became the subject of controversy after more than 70 photographs were reportedly asked to be removed or replaced shortly before the exhibition was scheduled to open.
The exhibition featured more than 100 photographs, including images documenting student and youth protests in Delhi. Raihan said the venue objected to the political nature of some photographs, while Bikaner House maintained that certain works did not comply with its exhibition policy. The dispute prompted a wider debate about artistic expression and censorship.
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The two portraits in Sonia Gandhi's memoir thus connect Rajiv's interest in photography with the creative work of his grandson, placing a family contribution at the centre of a book that traces six decades of personal and political history.
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