The pride of Ranthambhore

My Photo scholarship 2011 entry

Worldwide | Tuesday, November 8, 2011 | 5 photos

At age 35, being an Indian woman who hasn't accomplished what a good Indian woman must do - that is, get married, settle down and start a family; who has instead travelled down the road of being a dancer, an advertising copywriter, and a fashion entrepreneur and is currently going through an existential crisis of sorts; I found my camera took me away and yet brought be back to the beauty that is life. Whenever I couldn't take it anymore, I'd take my camera. My camera gave me a reason to travel, acting as a steady companion and a mobile studio to create what I felt like. These pictures were taken on a trip to Ranthambhore, a tiger reserve in Rajasthan, India. I have selected these images because for me they depict a true 'king of the jungle' attitude. Be it in the king himself, in the people who protect him or in his forest companions. I chose to translate them in black and white because that's really the law of the jungle, isn't it? No room for reasoning, no room for greys. My most amazing experience on the trip was a near face to face encounter with a male tiger. There was no time to fear the fact that there was no fence dividing us, there was only time to look, sigh and take a quick shot. He was magnificent. I think I would be lucky in more ways than one to be mentored by Jason and travel to South Africa. For me, it would be more than a photography expedition, it would be a sign of better things to come. In my photography, in my life. Perhaps?