Kanu Gandhi (1917-1986) was Gandhi’s grandnephew. He was the son of Narandas and Jamuna Gandhi, who lived at Sabarmati Ashram and then at Sevagram Ashram. Kanu’s father, Narandas, served as the de facto manager of Sabarmati Ashram whenever Gandhi was away. Kanu was raised in these intentional communities in India and received his education there. He was trained from his youth in the ideals of universal wellbeing (sarvodaya), nonviolent civil resistance (satyagraha, and he first went to prison in 1932 at the young age of 15), and selfless service (seva). As a young man Kanu became a close aide to Gandhi, and he was frequently found at Gandhi’s side both within the community and also when Gandhi was traveling for political engagements.

Kanu developed an interest in photography as a young man, though he never received formal training in the photographic arts. For the last decade of Gandhi’s life (from 1938-1948), Kanu captured many intimate and invaluable photos of the communal life at Sevagram Ashram, as well as photos of Gandhi at significant political events and moments. Some of the photos of the residents of Sevagram Ashram that are featured on this archive are the work of Kanu Gandhi, which are now in the public domain.

Kanu married Abha Chatterjee (married name: Abha Gandhi) in 1944, who had lived at Sevagram Ashram from the age of 13. After Gandhi’s assassination in 1948, Kanu and Abha continued to promote to way of life they had learned at Sevagram Ashram in Rajkot, Gujarat, teaching spinning and promoting cottage industries there at Rashtriya Shala. Kanu also continued to practice photography until his death in 1986.