Photo gallery exploring natural history, heritage and wildlife of Ranthambhore National Park, Rajasthan, India. Images comprise portraits of tigers, other wild animals and birds.
Dotting the landscape of Rajasthan, the dhok tree (Anogeissus pendula) is a symbol of unfailing strength over adversity.
Found only in the Aravallis, the tree dominates Rajasthan’s forests forming colonies on the rocky, barren slopes where little else grows. Despite having no special adaptation to survive in arid land, it thrives and shines. Its wood is one of the hardest in the world. The entire tree has medicinal properties that the tribes around the region know well and use in their traditional medicine.
The history of Ranthambhore as a protected forest reserve is fairly modern, but the place holds relics of an ancient regal past that is more than a thousand years old.
The fort of Ranasthambhapura was a seat of authority of the Chahamanas over the trade route it oversaw. Consequently it withstood much battle and bloodshed over its strategic location and power.
After fierce battles and changing many ruling hands, the fort finally rested with the royals of Jaipur, before Independence. From the days of being an adventure ground for the royal family to providing sanctuary for wildlife, the forest reserve has achieved an amazing transformation since its inception as Sawai Madhopur Game Sanctuary in 1955.
With the launch of Project Tiger in the early ‘70s, Ranthambhore became one of the first parks to rehabilitate villages out of the protected areas, to allow uncompromising protection to tigers and the wildlife within. The abandoned step wells and the banyans remind us of the herculean effort by stewards like Fateh Singh Rathore to make this place a tiger haven.
In the scorching heat of Rajasthan’s summers, the Banyan trees that served the village folk as resting places and to keep the water from the step wells from evaporating, now provide respite to the wild fauna.
That the tiger, anointed the National Animal, with its deep ties to the Indian psyche, seeks refuge with the Banyan, the National Tree (a symbol for the Indian ethos of revering nature and animals) is a reminder of everything we hold sacred and why preserving their rightful place in the natural order of things is our Fundamental Duty.
Humans are arguably the top most predator now, but once we remove ourselves from the chain of predation, if only to stand back and watch, as we do in protected reserves, the tiger emerges in its full glory as the most feared in the jungle.
A protected reserve like Ranthambhore allows the tiger to stand tall and fearless…
…a place where a cat’s curiosity about humans is satiated the same way as humans’ fascination with cats — by respecting each others’ boundaries.
A morning safari is an opportunity to cross paths with a tiger on its beat.
Tracking movement of prey from far and near.
Evening safaris could offer the sight of a tiger relishing a lazy sundown.
Summer afternoons are best for well-prepared naps.
Peak summer calls for a nap in the pool throughout the day.
Stepping into watering holes might need advance warning to crocodiles to respect the claim of a tiger’s rightful place.
Just as this young tiger offered the human onlookers a perspective of her full-grown size, so they were mindful of who owned the territory and everything in it.
Sambhar deer stags get nervous about any unwarranted attention, despite their formidable size and antlers.
Sambhar deer are not herd animals, in general, but find it wise to keep company in small numbers. Every prey animal in the forest could do with extra pairs of watchful eyes, especially around sources of water…
Some prey species simply rely on blind speed to avoid trouble. This hare was gone in the next blink.
If everything else fails, there’s always camouflage to save the day.
These friendly corvids have adapted to tourist activity more than any other species in Ranthambhore. One of the first species outside the park entrance to catch your attention, they rummage around vehicles and wait patiently for some luck with tidbits.
If it’s not Treepies, then it’s the babblers. Always moving in flocks of six to seven birds, these enterprising birds hop right into vehicles to search for crumbs.
It’s a joy watching these bold birds socialise in their groups, helping each other preen, even as they keep an eye on incoming vehicles stopping at the gate.
The tiger is what everyone hopes to see and experience at Ranthambhore, but it’s the peafowl’s resounding calls that complete the experience providing the familiar background score.
The image of Ranthambhore is that of an arid, dry jungle. But the lakes offer enough sustenance to species like the Fish Owl too.
Move through the woods slowly to surprise yourself with snoozing Scops Owls hidden carefully in tree holes.
Or wait quietly by the ponds or lakes only for the kingfisher to break the spell of quiet contemplation with a quick dive and splash.
Watching the waterbodies in Ranthambhore can offer a sighting of the versatile freshwater turtle, the Indian Flapshell. It has great capacity to withstand drought conditions and dry summers of Rajasthan.
The solitary Black Stork that prefers deep jungles seeks refuge in Ranthambhore during winters.
Even critically endangered birds like the Long-Billed Vulture seek protection within the reserve.
Every forest dweller, whether a vulture or an unrecognisable ‘little brown bird’, benefits from conservation efforts.
The tiger serves as a mascot for the entire ecosystem, a conspicuous health indicator for a forest. A forest where tigers walk free is a healthy forest that offers the dignity of life to every creature within it.
Images from Mangalajodi and other places in Chilika, Odisha
The sun rises over Chilika Lake, Asia’s largest coastal lagoon and the world’s second largest, a lake that merges with the Bay of Bengal as it spans three districts in Odisha.
Dotted with islands, each with a unique character of its own, it's easy to mistake the lagoon for the sea.
Just before sunrise, fishermen set off for work in boats that look like rowboats but with an crudely assembled motor.
Ferrying tourists every day to various islands on the lake may be a tedium, but the boatman seemed as if he could never have enough of sunrise.
The abode of Ma Kali reminds us not to be carried away by the serenity of the waters. These gentle waves frequently carry brutal cyclones bringing death and loss to thousands in one go.
The island is barely enough to hold the temple complex but attracts devotees from all around.
Odisha’s temples have a distinct architecture. Smaller the size, the more colourful their walls.
While the Goddess shows her dark form in the inner sanctum, her benign form appears on the walls of the temple.
A ‘wetland of international importance’ under the Ramsar convention, Chilika hosts close to a million wintering birds every year.
With its long pink stilts for legs, this wader is perfectly at home in these waters.
The lake appeals to shorebirds as well as freshwater birds like the Common Sandpiper, which explains why so many birds flock to this region.
Birdwatching is taken to a dizzying frenzy at Mangalajodi marshes. Boatmen ferry tourists and birdwatchers along the marshes deftly. Most boatmen can spot and identify the birds with an easy familiarity.
Grey-headed Swamphens (formerly, purple swamp hens) fly across the marshes frequently, emphasising the vastness and abundance of this habitat.
A closer look shows why this species was named ‘grey-headed’ as different from ‘purple swamphen’. From a distance, it’s hard to tell. And it’s easier here than anywhere else to take as close a look as you’d like.
When the wintering birds leave in March, the entire habitat is left to the residents - the swamp hens, moor hens, jacanas, who seem to leap around with abandon, claiming as much tract of marshy water as they please.
With a wide spread of its toes and claws, a ‘foot’ is more likely to be a unit of measurement of area in Swamphen-speak. With long strides, they map the edges of the marshes diligently.
The migrants map whole continents before they reach Chilika. Wintering in India, Ruddy Shelducks are strong fliers, migrating thousands of miles from Central Asia and Eastern Europe, at perilously high altitudes to reach warmer coasts of India.
Ruddy shelducks, that seem so perfectly at home in this tropical lagoon, spend their summers nesting and breeding north of the Himalayas, flying over the tallest mountains soaring as high as 22,000 feet to reach their seaside winter destination.
After a brief holiday in the tropics, the migrants fly back thousands of kilometres to raise a new family and bring them back here next season.
By April, most migrants are gone, except for a few lazy ones (like the Garganey in the picture) who, perhaps, enjoy the winter home a little too much.
Another bird that unmistakably enjoys the marshes of Chilika. Adorning rice fields and marshes in Odisha, the chestnut birds with metallic green wings show off their striking breeding plumage.
The non-breeding adults have a toned-down plumage with hints of iridescence, like an actor on stage waiting to step into the spotlight any moment.
The low banks of marshes offer plenty of resting space for Little Cormorants who dive for a living.
A shallow waterbody offers this expert diver plenty of wallow-time between pursuing fish underwater.
Then there are those who wish to stand and wait, with a heron’s patience…
…or a stork’s wisdom.
The Asian Openbill sports a knowing smile through the gap in his bill, amused at the inside joke only he knows: the ‘smile’ that is a death grip for the snails beneath his feet.
The reeds hide the shy ones, the restless ones, that are hard to spot. Like the grass bird that flits in and out of reeds, shy and inquisitive at once, making a podium out of a grass stalk when the urge to sing takes over.
As a strikingly yellow Citrine Wagtail sways on a thin branch, it makes you wonder if birds are simply flowers that can fly.
Quivering in the air before gently descending to the ground, their feathers might as well be made of petals.
If not flower-incarnates, birds are the closest friends flowers can have.
Nicknamed Lotus-trotter, the Jacana of Chilika enjoys the company of water hyacinth too.
The broad leaves of water hyacinth offer support to the Jacana’s tread.
While the marshy ground is abuzz with waders, the air is teeming with terns.
The whiskered tern, with a preference to inland marshes, visits Chilika from Eastern Europe.
While there’s enough fish to share with other species, terns can take grasshoppers and beetles while keeping an eye out from above.
As migrants leave, the residents get ready for their breeding season. The all-white cattle egret wears an orange hood for the summer, waving the colour across the countryside.
When the last migrant bird has said goodbye, as the heat turns up, the long wait for visitors begins.
A photographic tour of Bali’s famous temples and iconic cultural landmarks - Uluwatu, Garuda Wisnu Kencana Park, Pura Ulun Danu Beratan, Jatiluwih rice terraces, Pura Besakih and Tanah Lot.
The roads of Denpasar, the capital city of Bali, seem like any other modern city in the world, except for one thing - every turn and square have ancient stories to tell.
This junction, close to the International Airport at Denpasar, reminds us of how Lord Rama built the bridge across the Indian Ocean with the aid of his dedicated army.
To the south of Denpasar, as we enter Uluwatu, the glorious battle of the Vanara Sena, Sri Rama’s army with Kumbhakarna looms large.
Literally, the edge of a rock, Uluwatu is a sacred spot for the Balinese. Overseeing the Indian Ocean, here sits Rudra as Sang Hyang Widi Wasa in the Pura Luhur Uluwatu.
Built in the 11th century, Pura (temple) Uluwatu is one of the most ancient structures in Bali.
As though in honour of the temple, the tranquil blue waves of the Indian Ocean turn milky white at the edge of the cliff.
A watchtower (known as bale kulkul) in the premises of the temple, that traditionally houses a drum meant to communicate messages to the village.
The Uluwatu temple has a large amphitheater where scenes from the Ramayana are enacted through Kecak, a Balinese dance form, every evening.
The performance begins with men gathering around a ritual fire chanting.
Scenes from the Ramayana are performed with no music or dialogue amidst the chanting of ‘chak chak chak’ (hence the name Kecak).
Marica lures Rama away in the guise of a golden deer.
Rama sets out into the forest chasing the golden deer, after advising Lakshmana to keep close watch.
After hearing Rama’s cries, Sita worries for his safety.
A concerned Lakshmana reluctantly goes after his brother, but not before drawing a protective line around the cottage to keep Sita from harm.
A livid Rahwana seeks to exact revenge.
The highlight of the performance is the enactment of Hanuman’s setting fire to Alangka as Rahwana tries to keep him imprisoned.
A recent addition to Balinese architecture, the Garuda Wisnu statue can be seen from the airport and from many beaches in South Bali. it is the central monument to a cultural theme park that highlights all things Bali - art, culture and food.
Set amidst a vast expanse of rocky terrain, the statue itself was built in parts in Bandung, West Java before it was shipped to the location and assembled.
The statue is around 400 feet tall and 200 feet wide (wingspan of Garuda).
Garuda as the mount of Wisnu is a popular motif throughout Indonesia.
The greenish statue gets its colour tinge from copper and brass and stands on a pedestal that houses a large gallery that explains the making of the statue.
There are several versions of the statue spread across the park including this miniature version (relatively speaking) at one of the gates.
As Garuda soars high in the heavens, his half-brothers, the Nagas aptly adorn the steps that go down into the basement.
Gangsa is a traditional musical instrument used in Balinese gamelan music that is reminiscent of Santoor, and true to the Balinese artistic spirit, quite ornately designed.
Away from the tourist buzz, in central Bali, rice terraces of Jatiluwih show a simpler, harder life in the lap of nature.
Traditional rice farming in Bali relies on a uniquely Balinese irrigation system called Subak that ensures sustainable sharing of water in the community.
For the use of Subak method of irrigation and the growing of traditional varieties of Balinese rice, the Jatiluwih terraces are recognised as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Bali has been growing rice for around 1500 years and the irrigation system is about a thousand years old.
The word Nasi can mean rice and meal in Balinese. Not surprisingly, as the Balinese eat rice in every meal.
As beautiful as the terraces seem from above with their lush green ridge-like patterns, walking through the fields makes one realise the hard work it takes to grow rice.
Up close the terraces are steep and slushy, with barely a shelter to protect you from the rain or sun. An occasional shed is for the cattle.
Pura Ulun Danu Beratan (the temple on Lake Beratan) controls the source of water for irrigation to north, central and east Bali. The temple worships Shiva, Parvati and Dewi Danu, the lake goddess.
The main shrine of a temple has a tiered pagoda-like tower called Meru, in the image of the Meru Mountain. The number of tiers vary according to the deity worshipped. The meru at Pura Beratan has 11 tiers as is required for a Shiva temple. Brahma and Wisnu temples have nine tiers.
The meru is made of thatches of alang-alang, a long grass variety, that need to be replaced every few decades. The grassy layers make perfect hang-outs for tree sparrows and yellow-vented bulbuls.
The newly thatched roof tiers in comparison to the old one in the background.
The biggest and one of the most ancient temple complexes in Bali, Pura Besakih.
Pura Besakih sits on the slopes of Mount Agung at 3300 feet above sea level. Besakih (Vasuki in Sanskrit) is the serpent who holds Mount Meru (Agung) in place.
The terrifying figure of Bhoma (Bhauma in Sanskrit) protects and guards sacred places in Bali. Bhoma is the son of Wisnu (in the varaha or boar form and Pertiwi, the earth goddess).
Pura Besakih is made of twenty three shrines and temples, including those for Brahma, Wisnu and Sita, among other deities and ancestors.
It is believed that the first worship rituals here were performed by Rsi Markandeya in the 8th Century. His followers settled in the village of Aga on the mountain slopes.
Tanah Lot stands away from the mainland as its own island in the sea, with all access cut off during high tide.
Tanah Lot temple honours Dewa Baruna, the god of the sea, at a place where the natural beauty of the sea and land come together to make it an iconic location popular with tourists from all over the world.
The temple was built by sage Nirartha in the 16th century.
The Tanah Lot temple and the rock are listed as one of the hundred most endangered historical sites by World Monuments Watch.
Crowds gather every day to watch the sun set over Tanah Lot on the west coast of Bali. The long cliff seen behind the temple is Uluwatu where the amphitheater is fast filling up for the daily Kecak dance.
The sacred place that lends its name to the town and the bird sanctuary.
The islets of Ranganathittu on a winter morning.
The golden hour
The territorial bird keeps a watch
Sunbathing
Breeding plumage
A portrait
A solitary, reclusive bird
After a worthwhile wait
Landing on water
Pelicans look for stray twigs and branches in water that’s easy to gather
From a foot-long twig to long branches, every stick counts
A pelican soaks the sun on the calm waters
Splashing around
Slightly larger than the Little Cormorant, with green eyes.
A little cormorant embracing the golden morning
On its customary perch
Loving a life on the edge
Blending in with the rocks
Greener than greens