Aishwarya Sridhar (born 12 January 1997) is an Indian wildlife photographer, wildlife presenter, and documentary filmmaker residing in Navi Mumbai. She is the youngest girl to have won the Sanctuary Asia- Young Naturalist Award and the International Camera Fair. Award. In 2020, Aishwarya became the first Indian woman to win Wildlife Photographer of the Year award. She is also a member of the State Wetland Identification Committee appointed by the Bombay High Court.
She's a National Geographic Explorer and the cofounder & CEO of Bambee Studios, a production company in India specializing in natural history and environmental documentaries. Her works have been featured in BBC Wildlife, The Guardian, Sanctuary Asia, Saevus, Hindustan Times, Mumbai Mirror, Digital Camera, Mathrubhumi and Mongabay.
She has received numerous awards for her contribution towards nature including the 'Diana Award' and 'Woman Icon India Award' from the Governor of Tamil Nadu. Aishwarya is also actively involved in environmental conservation.
Education and career Aishwarya was born on 12 January, and grew up in Mumbai, India. She is the daughter of Sridhar Ranganathan and Rani Sridhar to a Tamil family. She was a student of Dr Pillai Global Academy, New Panvel and was the world topper in Business Studies in Cambridge International Examinations in 2013.. She was also a student at Pillai College of Arts, Science and Commerce now part of Pillai University as a student Mass Media.
Her father is a member of the Bombay Natural History Society (BNHS) and Aishwarya used to accompany him on treks to various forests. Her love for photography started when she was 13. From an early age, Aishwarya started trekking in the jungles of Ratnagiri in Maharashtra. Her debut documentary 'Panje-The Last Wetland' was telecast on DD National in 2018. It was about conserving the last remaining wetland of Uran named Panje. The film helped bring a Bombay High Court order to stop the reclamation of the wetland.
She has also made a feature film on a wild Bengal Tigress named Maya titled 'The Queen of Taru' which received the Best Amateur Film Award at the 9th Wildlife Conservation Film Festival (WCFF), New York City. Apart from filmmaking and photography, Aishwarya is also a poet and a writer.
Awards and recognition
2011: Sanctuary Asia’s Young Naturalist Award 2013: World Topper in Cambridge International Exams in Business Studies 2014: World Sparrow Day Photography and Poem competition- 2nd prize. 2016: International Camera Fair Award 2018: Young Digital Camera Photographer of the Year-Winner-Small World 2019: Princess Diana Award 2019: Woman Icon India Award 2020: Jackson Wild Fellowship 2020: Wildlife Photographer of the Year by Natural History Museum, London
Films
Year Title Type Network Film Festival Awards Status Ref(s) 2018Panje-The Last Wetland Documentary Doordarshan (DD National) National Science Film FestivalBest Film in Fusion Category 2019 Queen of Taru Feature 9th Wildlife Conservation Film Festival, New York Best Film Award in Amateur/Emerging Category Singapore South Asian International Film Festival 2020 Fun-Crafts with Aishwarya Series (8-episodes) WWF-India 2020Nature For FutureSeriesDiscovery Channel
References
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