Portrait of Wildindia

By Anant Zanjale

It was in 1984 that I visited the Kanha forest with a group of friends. It was love at first sight in my case, and what started off as a casual visit soon turned into a lifelong affair. As the years passed by, I explored many other jungles too. Every new place came with a new set of friends. Along with them, my acquaintance with the animals and their habitat began growing. During the initial phase, I did my photography with a video camera, but around 1996, I came across the book Sunlight and Shadows by M. Y. Ghorpade. Literally overnight I switched over to a still camera. Although I met him much later in my life, I made him my guru there and then. His photograph Tusker in the Rain, taken when photography was a difficult pursuit, still captivates me. Even in this age, I find it difficult enough doing wildlife photography using digital equipment. I can only imagine the hard work that he must have put in with his medium-format camera using black-and-white film.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Partridge Publishing India
• Release date: Oct 21, 2015
• ISBN: 9781482857771

Anant Zanjale

Ever since first visit with friends to Kanha National Park in 1984, avid wildlife lover and photographer Anant Vasant Zanjale has devoted himself single mindedly to visiting and recording on film the wildlife of almost every sanctuary and national park across the length and breadth of the country. In the process his work has received international recognition and acclaim. In 1998, he reached, for the first time, the finals of the BBC Wildlife Photographer of the Year contest and till date he has done so 9 times, having got to the semiKfinals stage as many as 51 times. In the German Wildlife Photography Awards he received the Gold Star 36 times. In this volume we present a selection of Anant Zanjale’s photographs depicting not just a few species, but a broad spectrum of India’s rich biodiversity and immense faunal wealth. This should be of interest and value to both casual visitors to our national parks and sanctuaries as well as to serious students of Indian Wildlife. His comments alongside each photograph provide interesting insights into the romance and charm of our wild places and the wonderful creatures that inhabit them.

Book preview

Copyright © 2015 Anant Zanjale. All rights reserved.

ISBN

978-1-4828-5776-4 (sc)

978-1-4828-5777-1(e)

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping or by any information storage retrieval system without the written permission of the author except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

www.partridgepublishing.com/india

10/21/2015

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Contents

Blessings

Preface

tiger

Prince

Male tiger

At ease

Cool

The Indian Pitta

Gaur female

Tigress with Barahsingha kill

Tigress at home

Tiger cubs in the nursery

Dog attack!

Kanha meadows just before the monsoon

Leopard resting on rock

Aggressive Red Jungle Fowl

Indian Grey Hare

Barahsingha herd

Bamboo Pit Viper

Balancing act – Spotted Deer (Chital)

Sambar pair

Indian Rock Python

Peacock

Adjutant Stork

Hooded grasshopper

Misty splendor

Changeable Hawk Eagle with mongoose kill

Chital reflection

Pond Heron

At School!

King Vulture

What a relief!

Butterfly

Angry Egret

Crested Serpent Eagle

Barn Owl

Snooze

Hanuman Langur

Peacock in wedding attire

Elephant herd at sundown

Elephants with a human touch?

Male elephant playing in water

Protective matriarchs

Reminiscent of Hatari

Spotted Owlet

Butterfly convention

Hovering king

Himalayan Crested Pied Kingfisher

Gigantic tusker

Paradise Flycatcher with catch

Just back from the parlor!

Long-tailed Shrike at roost

Gharial

Plum-headed Parakeet

Yellow Monitor

One-horned rhinoceros

One-horned rhinoceros female with young one

Pebbles - Namdapha river

Stream - Namdapha

Golden Langur

Capped Langur

Hot springs

The Black-necked Stork

The Hoolock Gibbon

Pig-tail Macaque

Assamese monkey

Spectacled monkey

Ibis-bills

Fire!

Fruits of the wild

Beware -Poison!

Colorful Moth

Background score of the jungles

Wild Buffaloes

Beautiful Himalayan river

Basking in the sun

The wettest place on earth?

Really Great Hornbill

Kingfisher with catch

It’s all in the frame

Necessity – the mother of invention

They can yet be saved

Run for fun in the Rann!

Beyond VIBGYOR!

His Royal Highness

Family portrait

Curiosity

Q please

Baby Bird!

Immigrants

Winged acrobat

Adonis!

Little cousin

Mummy, I am hungry!

Time for fun and games

Nostalgia in ‘Black & White’

Let there be light!

Maternal love

Lord Krishna’s avatar!

Heading for safety

Mamma, play with me!

Who’s there!

Sheer beauty

Handsome spoonbills

Yellow

Patience pays

Lustrous eyes

At the dentist’s?

I am The King!

A bee in his bonnet!

Upside down

Taking the shortcut

Forward, March!

Alacrity

For the home

Artist’s envy

A soft landing

Heavyweight champion

Warning! Predator at large

Biting off more than it can chew!

Acknowledgement

About the Author

002-3.tifBlessings.tif

Blessings

According to the Vedas, Nature is the manifestation of the All-powerful and All-knowing God. He has created Man whose body has been structured on the lines of all trees, plants, fish, animals and other living beings.

In His world, no being is redundant. Everyone, every part has a role. Wild animals too have an important role in the Divine scheme. Each being contributes something to the environment…

Some animals add beauty; others add something else.

Preface.tif

Preface

It was in 1984 that I visited the Kanha forest with a group of friends. It was love at first sight in my case and what started off as a casual visit soon turned into a lifelong affair. As the years passed by I explored many other jungles too. Every new place came with a new set of friends. Along with them, my acquaintance with the animals and their habitat began growing. During the initial phase I did my photography with a video camera, but around 1996, I came across the book ‘Sunlight and Shadows’ by M. Y. Ghorpade. Literally overnight I switched over to a still camera. Although I met him much later in my life, I made him my Guru, there and then. His photograph ‘Tusker in the Rain’ taken when photography was a difficult pursuit still captivates me. Even in this age I find it difficult enough doing wildlife photography using digital equipment: I can only imagine