Women Changing India features a selection of 108 pictures taken by photographers from the renowned Magnum Agency.

The six photographers, Olivia Arthur, Martine Franck, Raghu Raï, Alessandra Sanguinetti, Alex Webb and Patrick Zachmann, where selected to each highlight a different subject matter.

Their assignment was to photograph, in its various forms, the strength of Indian women who are able to change and transform the country: microcredit projects and support associations (Martine Franck), women access to education (Olivia Arthur) or key women players within the film industry (Alessandra Sanguinetti).

These six reports have a common thread: each puts into play the daily activities of these women and reflects how the larger Indian society evolves following their initiatives. Alex Webb met women in Mumbai and Delhi who have managed to find work as taxi drivers, head chefs and security agents. Patrick Zachmann’s work bares witness to political women. Since 1992 and following the amendment of the constitution, 33% of seats of panchayats - the local assemblies that administer villages, must be held by women. Zachmann’s pictures show them hard at work administering their community and, at the same time, dedicated to carrying out their family and professional chores. Raghu Raï pays tribute to icons of Indian feminism with portraits of Anu Aga or Ela Bhatt, writers, laywers or managers who have played a key role in the evolution of Indian society.

Reporters without Borders chose Women Changing India for its 2011 album, 100 photos for Press Freedom (publishing date: 15 September), whose profit will help fund the non-profit organisation. The exhibition Women Changing India has been conceived and organised thanks to the support of BNP Paribas.