Nature inFocus – A platform for nature lovers | Fusion - WeRIndia

Rohit Varma and Kalyan Varma both grew up in places surrounded by Indian wildlife. Rohit comes from Balaghat in Madhya Pradesh, a place known for its abundant and beautiful wilderness.

He started a corporate career in Bengaluru in 1997, but when he took a trip to Bandipur National Park thirteen years later, he decided to return to nature and became an ecological photographer.

Kalyan began as an engineer in Visakhapatnam, but he caught onto wildlife photography in 2005, and decided to leave his engineering job for nature photography and filmmaking. When they met, their shared dedication and passion for nature led them to start Nature inFocus.

Nature inFocus (or NiF) was founded in 2014, about a year after Rohit and Kalyan met. They realized that there was no physical platform for Indian nature enthusiasts, or even an offline platform for the wildlife community in the entirety of Asia.

Therefore, the duo created Nature inFocus to fill that gap. The platform began with a Bengaluru festival in March of 2014. They decided to expand their platform by creating three ways to celebrate nature. Their NiF Photography Festivals are held yearly, and they have now also created the NiF Photography Awards, composed of six categories, and the NiF Portal, which provides a photo-led explorative experience into the Indian wilderness.

Nature inFocus has grown quickly since its beginning, and members of the nature photography community have come to participate in these activities from all around the world.

Part of their focus has shifted to nature awareness, with the creation of campaigns like “Save The Tiger”, and their new focus on natural history. NiF has also garnered a strong online presence, with the NiF Portal rising in popularity and their use of social media to share their nature stories.

In the future, they wish to make their offline presence stronger, and to continue raising awareness about the importance of natural wildlife.

Image Reference: YourStory