376. Farhat Basir Khan

Farhat Basir Khan is an Indian Photographer, Media Activist Academician, Media Professional & theoretician. A senior most faculty member at the Mass Communication and Research Centre, Jamia Millia Islamia where he holds the prestigious Maulana Abdul Kalam Azad Chair, Khan has also served as the Professor of Media & Communication at the same the Centre. He has also founded the Academy for Photographic Excellence - a Jindal Photo Initiative with which he was associated in the capacity of Director.
He uses new media formats like walk in multimedia installation for symposium and is considered to be the father of modern Photography and Mass education in India. He has been instrumental in the vocationalization of media education in India by designing syllabi for the University Grants Commission (India) and the National Council of Educational Research and Training.
Khan has completed several national and international media projects and consultancies and distinguished himself as a visiting faculty and jury member both in India and abroad. His contribution to photography and media studies in India, both as an academician as well as a industry professional, has been widely acknowledged.
Khan produced the 50-year commemorative audio-visual for UNICEF India as well as WHO SEAR. and contributes regularly to several Electronic, print and Web media.

Biography

Farhat Basir Khan was born on 2 August 1957 in Aligarh and completed his Post Graduate Degree from Aligarh Muslim University in 1978. He started his career as a photojournalist, but soon distinguished himself also as an industrial and advertising photographer and Audio Visual producer. Interest in academics led him to become a teacher of Photography at Aligarh Muslim University. Following widespread Industry exposure, he joined the AJK Mass Communication Research Centre, where he heads the Photography, Multimedia & Audio Visual sections and holds the prestigious Maulana Abdul Kalam Azad Chair. He further served as the founder Director of the Academy for Photographic Excellence- a Jindal Photo Initiative with which he was associated in the capacity of Director.

Work

 Academic Work

Farhat Basir Khan is the senior most faculty member of AJ Kidwai Mass Communication and Research Centre, Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi. During his career as an academician he has taught several prominent names of the industry such as Shah Rukh Khan, Roshan Abbas, Barkha Dutt, Kabir Khan, Loveleen Tandan, Aseem Mishra and Saurabh Narang. He has been rigorously involved in designing new Media Courses & setting up facilities at Educational Institutes and universities throughout the country. He also contributed under the National education policy in 1993, and was the first to design & develop a three year undergraduate degree programme in Still-Photography and audio video production which was adopted by the UGC for nation-wise assistance. He also assisted the Department of Vocationalisation of Education for NCERT for their first photography vocational course at senior school level in the mid-eighties. He is credited with the invention of several new formats like walk-thorough symposiums and multimedia installations. His curatorial project Votography integrates street theatre, installation, graphics and photography.
He has served as a member of many prestigious juries such as International CMS Vatavaran Film Festival, Delhi; Fuji Film Super Six, Film Photography and Animation Festivals at IIT Kanpur and Delhi; and most recently for the last three years at the International Broadcast Convention for Content Creation, Management & Delivery in Netherlands, Amsterdam.

 Commercial Work

An active commercial photographer, Khan has earned much fame as an industrial and advertising photographer. He is famous for his campaigns for Grey, Lintas, Leo Burnett, Atlas, Oberoi Maidens, Avis, Grasim and Delhi Police. He has contributed to various international projects such as the One World programme for UNICEF delegates on Unspooling the Documentary Process and for institutes such as MIT, Russian Film School and Harvard Business School. Prof. Khan was chosen to make an Audio Visual for Commemoration of 50 years for both UNICEF and WHO from amongst all the Professional Photographers around the world.

Sony World Photography Awards, Cannes

His most recent international achievement has been to bring to India, the prestigious World Photography Award – Student Focus at the Palais des Festival in Cannes, defeating finalists from all the other continents. It was won by the team he was leading, consisting of two of his students at AJK Mass Communication Research Centre, Jamia in 2009. In 2010, the team led by him were the Asia finalists. The award brought the focus of World Photography on India and AJK Mass Communication and Research Centre.

Source : Wikipedia