Hailing from Kerala, the costal state of India famous for their communist dominance in politics, Che Guevara is not an unfamiliar name at all. The guerilla revolutionary who joined Fidel Castro in overthrowing Cuba’s repressive Batista regime gained an iconic status among communist around the world as the leader of Cuban and internationalist guerrillas.But after being captured and executed deep in Bolivian forest by Bolivian soldiers the very famous Che-photo attained never before popularity that any other single photo has managed. This picture of Che Guevara was given the status -”the most famous photograph in the world and a symbol of the 20th century.” The following picture was taken on 5th of March 1960 during the memorial ceremony following the Belgian arms transport explosion in Havana harbor which killed 136 people.
The photo was taken by Alberto Korda who snaps just 2 pics of Che when he appeared on the stage for less than a minute during the Fidel Castro speech at the ceremony. The photo became famous only seven years later after the death of Guevara in Bolivia, when Italian publisher Giangiacomo Feltrinelli obtained the rights to publish Guevara’s Bolivian Diary and published the image as a large poster. Feltrinelli had obtained prints from Korda a few months before Guevara’s death. It was originally planned to
use the picture for the cover of the Italian edition of the diary. But Soon after his death the photo found a new meaning and purpose. The various version of the photos came out, some in red and black, others in black and white and some in black and white with a red star.
The two-toned print version of the picture, has a long history of free distribution starting as free posters in Italy to innumerable number of copies and versions all around the globe promoting the spirit of Che Guevara.Korda never asked for any profits from the sale of his image, and never questioned the use of it until 2000, when he sued Smirnoff Vodka for using it in an ad campaign. The image is now worn and adored by a diverse group of people; the one’s who truly believe in ideals that Che Guevara lived for to fashion freaks who has little or no knowledge of the symbolism or history of Che Guevara. Either way the legacy and history of Che Guevara remains immortal.
