In this collector's edition, photographer Raghu Rai catches the greatest of great nayak musicians in moments ranging from affectionate to intense, and all unusual. Eight of these masters have passed away, making it a rare record of Indian classical music. Sunday MiD DAY steals a look

If Padma Shri photographer Raghu Rai's father, an administrator in the irrigation department, didn't want him to be a civil engineer, his latest book, may not have been born. It's the middle class aversion to a career in music that spurred Rai's curiosity. India's Greatest Masters ufffd A Photographic Journey into the Heart of Classical Music captures India's greatest classical musicians in rare and intimate moments. It began as a photo essay for a news magazine Rai worked with in the 1980s. The photographs are accompanied by poignant essays by Lalit Kala Akademi chairman Ashok Vajpeyi, who makes it seem effortless to reveal the human face of legends.

Tabla maestro Zakir Hussain at home with his family

Pandit Ravi Shankar with wife Sukanya and daughter Anoushka

Pandit Ravi Shankar's fingers injured from playing the sitar

Flautist Hari Prasad Chaurasia with musician friends and family at his sixtieth
birthday celebrations

Pandit Bhimsen Joshi, who is fond of expensive cars, with his Mercedes
on a hilltop near Pune

Shehnai maestro Bismillah Khan in a playful mood with his many
grandchildren

Vocalist Kumar Gandharv with wife Bhanumati at home

Carnatic music exponent MS Subbulakshmi is helped by friends at Satya
Sai Baba's ashram near Bengaluru

Vocalist Mallikarjun mansur, who was fond of smoking, being offered a
cigarette by his son, Shekhar. Photographed here days before his demise