JOIN USWomen of the wild
As our jeep approached the gate of Pench Tiger Reserve in Madhya Pradesh and stopped for temperature checks, a beaming face walked up to us. Clad in khakis, Sunanda was our guide for the morning drive. I had not seen a woman guide in the core zone before her.
Pleasantly surprised, I started a conversation. She told me that becoming a guide was the best decision of her life because the jungle and the wild animals keep her mind away from the troubles at home.
Since 2020, the Madhya Pradesh Forest Department has employed over 100 women guides across the national parks.
"We have five women guides in the reserve who have been trained at par with their male counterparts," said Vejayanantham TR, Deputy Director of Panna Tiger Reserve. "Geographical knowledge and technical training apart, these women have shown great resilience in participating in census and camera trapping work. We have noticed their perseverance in accepting the challenging task of being a forest guide. Guests have been quite impressed with their tracking skills as well."
Similar initiatives have been taken across all national parks to employ more female guides.
Camilla Malvestiti, an Italian national who came to visit India in 2017, was enthralled by the beauty of the Indian wilderness. She decided to move to Madhya Pradesh and started volunteering with a non-profit involving conservation work at Kanha.
"By the following season, I was training as a naturalist and guide for a wildlife resort, sharing my passion and knowledge. More than 800 safaris and numerous sightings later, I am running my wildlife tours, exploring the prime tiger areas," she said.
Life isn't easy in the jungles, and basic amenities are far away, but the wave of young women entering the force is only gaining pace.
PRONAT, a yearly immersive naturalist training course organized by Pugdundee Safaris, is seeing an encouraging 40-50 per cent of registrations from female candidates, said Manav Khanduja, Co-founder of the hospitality brand.
Mugdha Desai, who pursued a Masters in Wildlife Studies in Mumbai, was sure that she desired to be a naturalist to interact with people from all over the world and educate them about the value of our biodiversity. She now works with Pugdundee and believes that working in this domain is a healthy way of life.
"Even today, it is a fairly male-dominated sector. But until our generation of women gets active and creates an example for young girls, they won't be confident enough to think of an offbeat career like this," said Desai.
Malvestiti agrees.
"We can do the job and be as knowledgeable, and at times even better, than our male colleagues. Passion and tenacity show no preference to the gender, and people will come to respect that gradually," she said.
Kahini Ghosh Mehta spent her childhood in the forests of Madhya Pradesh in the 80s. She later founded Nature Wanderers in 2007 in Gurgaon with her husband, renowned wildlife photographer Shivang Mehta, curating photo tours for wildlife lovers. Mehta believes that wildlife as a career has evolved and has developed not just in tourism but even in photography, filmmaking and research and offers more opportunities to women.
(Chandreyi Bandyopadhyay is a freelance writer and communications professional with a keen interest in food and travel.)