About Taha Ahmad
Taha Ahmad (b. 20 November 1994, Lucknow, India) is a visual artist, photographer, and storyteller whose practice spans photography, installation, archival research, sound, cinema and other interdisciplinary mediums. Deeply rooted in questions of memory, politics, identity and language his work engages with his personal cultural inheritance and collective histories of South Asia. Ahmad’s practice functions as both witness and archive, driven by a desire to celebrate, remember, and contribute to the preservation of cultures and ways of being under threat of disappearing from our collective consciousness.
As a creative director, editorial and commercial photographer Ahmad has worked with some of the most prestigious film directors, publications and brands both in India and internationally.
Awards & Recognition
Taha has received several significant awards, including: Emerging Artist Award - Foundation for Indian Contemporary Art FICA (2020), Social Documentary Photography Grant SACAC (2020), The Toto-Tasveer Award for Photography (2018), The Documentary Project Fund/Award (2017) (Being the first Indian to receive the award) and the Neel Dongre Grant/Award for Excellence in Photography (2016).
Taha was a finalist for ‘Imagining the Nation State’ award by Chennai Photo Biennale, Diffusion Festival and British Council Wales (2020) and was shortlisted for the Lucie Foundation Emerging Scholarship, USA (2017, 2018 and 2019).
Taha has been included in media selections of notable contemporary creative talent including: Forbes Under 30 Asia List (The Arts) (2024), The Week Magazine’s 40 under 40 India (2022) and The ‘Regenerative List’ of 100 next-gen and current leaders by United Nations, Gucci and Irregular Labs (2020).
Residencies include: La Napoule Foundation Artist Residency at Château La Napoule, France (2026); PAIR Artist-in-Residency Program by Pier-2 Art Centre in Kaohsiung, Taiwan (2019); ‘Creative Interruptions’ Artist-in-Residence Program funded by Arts and Humanities Research Council (UK) Preet Nagar Trust, The University of British Columbia (Canada), The University of Strathclyde (UK) and CRCI (Delhi) to develop a body of work on the Partition of India and Pakistan, (2018).
Exhibition history
Taha has exhibited in many major photo festivals, biennales and exhibitions. Selected solo and group exhibitions include: ‘Drawn into two, which way home?’, Pennsylvania College of Technology USA (2025); Chennai Photo Biennale (2025); Rencontres Photographie Marrakech, Morocco (2025); ‘Echoes of Existence’ Studio Art Gallery, New Delhi, India (2024); ‘Notes on Omission’ Alliance Française de Delhi (2024) (supported by La Napoule Art Foundation, Prameya Art Foundation and Devi Art Foundation); ‘Drishti: 75 Years of Indian Image Making’ Museo Camera Centre for Photographic Arts, Gurgaon, India (2022) featuring 100 Indian photographers to celebrate the 75th anniversary of Indian Independence; ‘In Search of an Oasis’ a pan-India exhibition on climate change by Swiss Embassy in India (2022) (Supported by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Switzerland and the Ministry of External Affairs India); ‘Vantage Point Sharjah 9’ at the Sharjah Art Foundation, UAE (2021); ‘From the Other Side’ at The Reach Gallery Museum, Canada (2021); Fusion Arts Oxford (2021); ‘Eyes on Main Street’ Wilson Outdoor Photo Festival, USA (2018); Addis Foto Fest, Ethiopia, Africa (2018); 14th Angkor Photo Festival, Cambodia (2018) and others.
Taha’s work is in the permanent collection of Kiyosato Museum of Photographic Arts, Japan.
Media & Press
Taha’s work has variously contributed to or been featured in many publications, internationally and in India. A selection includes: The Times and The Sunday Times UK, Vogue India, New York Times, Vogue Britain, Invisible Photographer Asia, The Guardian, The Spectator, Atlas Obscura, Design India, The Telegraph UK, Man’s World India, Forbes India, Architectural Digest India, Times of India, The Week Magazine, The Hindu, Hindustan Times, Liberation, ASAP Connect, The Quint, Republic TV, IZ fotografevi magazine, Sahapedia, The Diplomat, Homegrown, MUSÉE Magazine, Platform Magazine, Ouest France, Scroll, New Indian Express, Business Standard, Black+White Photography Magazine, Neocha Magazine, Quartz India, Tasveer Journal, The Indian Quarterly, Mint Lounge, WWD, Elle India, T-Magazine Le Temps, The Curator Magazine, Svasa Life, Condé Nast Traveler, Variety, Living etc, Mumbai Mirror, Radio Mirchi, Taj Magazine, Esquire and The Word Magazine.
Work in Film & TV
As a sought-after film still photographer, Taha has worked with: Oscar nominated film Director Mira Nair, Oscar nominated film Producer Lydia Dean Pilcher, Oscar nominated film Director Sandhya Suri, Director/Writer Laetitia Colombani, Director Vishal Bhardwaj, Director Vidhu Vinod Chopra, Director Shimit Amin, Director Anubhav Sinha, Director Sumit Purohit and Netflix and The Viral Fever (TVF).
Books
Taha was among 150 photographers featured in Dr. Paul Lowe’s new book ‘Photography Rules: Essential Do’s and Don’ts from Great Photographers’ published by Frances Lincoln Press (2020). His stills photography has been featured in the photo book ‘Le Voyage de La Tresse’ based on the film ‘The Braid’ directed by Laetitia Colombani and published by Editions Grasset in France (2023). He also contributed to ‘A Saint, A Folktale and Other Stories’ by historian Rana Safvi and published by Rupa Publications (2021).
Fashion & Advertising
Taha co-shot Rahul Mishra’s campaign ‘The Dawn’ which opened at the Federation de la Haute Couture et de la Mode/Paris Fashion Week (2021) and Louis Vuitton’s campaign (2023).
Taha has shot several OnePlus campaigns including ‘OnePlus x Anuv Jain’ (2024) and ‘Never Settle’ (2024) and curated Good Earth’s ‘Festive’ Campaign (2024).
He collaborated with celebrated production designer Aradhana Seth on her project ‘Merchant of Images’ showcased at the Serendipity Arts Festival, Goa, India (2019).
Talks / Panels
Taha has been a panelist alongside film directors like Muzaffar Ali, Faraz Arif Ansari at the Koshala Literature Festival (2024 and 2025) and the Chennai Photo Biennale (2025).