Only 75 minutes away from Bhubaneswar, near Tangi, is the magical bird paradise of Mangalajodi. Located at the north-eastern edge of Chilika Lake, this 10 sq km patch of marshland has remained in the shadow of its famed parent lagoon. Mangalajodi is one of the largest of the 132 villages that stands on the banks of Chilika Lake. It hosts more than three lakhs migrating birds every winter
Bhubaneswar: The Magic of Mangalajodi, a photo exhibition, showcasing photographs of Mangalajodi taken by Avinash Khemka, would be held from December 7 to 13 at Lalit Kala Akademi Regional Centre here.
It was informed in a press meet Wednesday called by Song of the Wild, a not-for-profit organisation that focuses on the need to document precious flora and fauna that face intense threat worldwide due to degradation of natural habitats, global warming and climate change.
The exhibition will be curated by eminent ornithologist and author Bikram Grewal, noted wildlife photographer Sandeep Dutta, and well-known birdwatcher and conservationist Panchami Manoo Ukil.
The idea behind the display is not only to take the beauty of the habitat to a larger audience, but also to disperse the conservation story to the world, and solicit contributions from all stakeholders towards ongoing conservation efforts at Mangalajodi.
Students from schools, colleges, as well as children from orphanages in Bhubaneswar and Cuttack have been invited to view and participate in this exhibition.
Photographer Avinash said, “On every visit I wished that I could just stay back and remain immersed in the soothing nature’s canvas.” With state-of-art photography equipment to aid him, he began to capture the avian diversity and landscapes in his lens, through the seasons, year after year. The images presented in this exhibition have been curated out of more than ten thousand images of Mangalajodi captured over the last five years.
