A 16-year-old has trained his lens on the terrains and wildlife of Antarctica - all that we stand to lose if global warming takes its toll
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Even as he remains caught up with preparing for his board exams, 16-year-old Karmaditya Baldota has managed to hold his first photo exhibition, titled Antaclicka. Baldota who had an opportunity to visit the icy continent has, through his lens, captured whales, seals, birds, icebergs and of course, penguins. The photos have a distinct professional edge and transport the viewer to the frozen, windswept continent and focuses, in vivid detail what we stand to lose when global warming takes its toll.
"My trip to Antarctica was an experience unlike any other— it was on my bucket list for long, which now has been ticked off," Baldota tells us. The route of the cruise was Ushuaia to Falkland, to South Georgia and then Antarctica, and, he took pictures "at every spot I could". Baldota realised how to handle one's excitement with patience. "That is the most important thing to learn. There was a point where I was trying to get the picture of a penguin, fearing that I would be bitten by a fur seal from behind. It was scary!"
Growing up, among Baldota's many challenges has been overcoming dyslexia. "I have never thought of dyslexia as anything that holds me back; it is not a shortcoming, I see it as a secret gift. The lens and my vision have allowed me to express in a language which is visual and not audible, which perhaps comes more naturally to me. Travelling and capturing wildlife and nature is therapeutic."
Like his father Shrenik Baldota, he too is an "incurable photographer" who has traversed across the globe, right from Galapagos, Masai Mara, to Botswana. A student of Singapore High School, Baldota was the only one in his cruise ship to have captured the perfect whale breaching shot. The 10th standard student isn't sure yet if he wants to make photography his profession. "I've not thought about that yet. I do think I am well entrenched in the world of nature and wildlife photography to never want to give it up."
When: Till January 9, 11 am
to 5 pm
Where: Piramal Art Gallery, NCPA, Mumbai
Call: 22029483
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