Filmmaker Manish Mundra turns his camera to Africa in new book

New Delhi, Sep 19 (PTI) A pack of cheetahs looking inquiringly towards the camera after a successful hunt, a lion cub attempting a menacing growl at an unphased senior, and a herd of elephants grazing calmly across the greens of Africa are a few glimpses from filmmaker Manish Mundra's coffee table book, "Wild Africa: Through My Lens", reflecting his over two decades of association with the continent's wilderness.

The "Masaan" producer, who calls Africa his "journey, home, and purpose", reflects on themes of solitude, resilience, impermanence, and beauty through evocative images of raw landscapes and majestic wildlife.

Mundra captures the whole gamut of wildlife from hyenas, cheetahs, lions, and leopards to elephants, zebras, giraffes, ostriches, wildebeests, and rhinoceroses doing what they do best: hunting, mating, prowling, grazing, bathing, or simply enjoying a siesta.

“Africa has been my home. It has been 20-21 years since I set my foot on the continent, especially West Africa. Africa’s given me the space and the freedom. It has given me all that it takes to express, and when that empowerment happened - and that was because of Africa - it became very easy for me to understand the idea of Africa, especially the eastern part where the wildlife is," the "Newton" maker said.

He added that the idea of wildlife photography came to him about eight years ago, when "going to wildlife safaris was in vogue".

"Once I started going there, I felt something very inviting; something that gives you peace of mind and embraces you.” The book is a collection of pictures from a library of more than 28,000 that Mundra has clicked in the last eight years.

"I am not a trained photographer; I prefer to be identified as a passionate photographer who started by using auto mode, then eventually switched to manual mode — adjusting focal lengths, playing around with ISO settings — and finally surrendered to edits in Lightroom," the founder of Drishyam Films writes in the book's introduction.

Published by Rupa, the book is available at online and offline stores. PTI MAH MAH BK BK