Updated On: 15 September, 2020 09:21 AM IST | Mumbai | Jovita Aranha
Meet the Navi Mumbai-based wildlife filmmaker, the youngest fellow to be selected for the Jackson Wild Fellowship

Chota Matka at Tadoba Andhari Tiger Reserve. Pic/Aishwarya Sridhar
The prestigious Jackson Wild Fellowship which provides a platform for emerging conservation media leaders recently announced its 2020 fellows. And at 23, Navi Mumbai-based wildlife filmmaker and presenter, Aishwarya Sridhar, is the youngest to be chosen among 24 global fellows for the honour. Edited excerpts from an interview.
How did your love affair with wildlife conservation begin?
My father, Sridhar Rangan-athan, is a member of the Bombay Natural History Society. So, as a child, most of my weekends were spent trekking, going on wildlife trails, visiting wetlands, birdwatching for hours and documenting them. At the age of 11, when I saw my first big cat at Pench National Park, I was elated, but also heartbroken after the news of the same tiger being poached made headlines. It was at that time that I decided that I wanted to work for wildlife conservation.