Cat Scan

IT is the unpredictability of it all that drew a former textile and chemicals businessman to wildlife photography. And just 10 years after 6...

IT is the unpredictability of it all that drew a former textile and chemicals businessman to wildlife photography. And just 10 years after 62-year-old Sanat Shodhan converted his passion into a full-time profession, his kitty burgeons with 19 prestigious awards including a fellowship of the Photography Society of America.

Over the decade, Ahmedabad-based Shodhan has shot 10,000 pictures of mostly wild cats and about 400 species of birds in almost all sanctuaries and parks in the country.

The hazards of having wildlife photography as a passion have also come his way. Despite close shaves and near brushes with death, Shodhan thinks it’s all in a day’s work.

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‘‘The experiences are so unpredictable. You understand the value of life only when you are close to death,’’ he says. The photographer recently spent time in the Gir forest, the last home of the Asiatic lion.

What came out of his time in the sanctuary, about 400 km from Ahmedabad, is this montage of pictures—a close look through the lens at the life of the king of the jungle.

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Prashant Kishor: ‘Democracy not weak… Those saying people will lose vote rights are fools’

Political Pulse2 hr ago

Political strategist-turned-politician Prashant Kishor launched his Jan Suraaj Party (JSP) after three years touring Bihar. The coming Assembly polls will be the first test of his goal to emerge as the third alternative in Bihar politics. Kishor speaks to The Indian Express about his party’s campaign, and the issues being raised by his rivals.

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