How David Attenborough inspired Indians to see nature differently

Jairam Ramesh, Rajya Sabha MP and erstwhile Union Minister for Environment and Forests

“David Attenboroughwas portion of Indira Gandhi’s ellipse of naturalists. In 2019, successful his acceptance code connected winning the Indira Gandhi Prize for Peace, Disarmament and Development, helium recalled a speech with her successful the aboriginal 1960s. Attenborough had driven her to Birmingham, wherever they discussed however tv could beryllium utilized for acquisition and nationalist communication. For my part, I was acquainted with the Attenborough sanction done Richard Attenborough, who acted in Shatranj Ke Khilari (1977) and directed Gandhi (1982). It was my wife, a naturalist, who introduced maine to David Attenborough. If Attenborough’s period was astir seeing the earthy world, the coming period is astir redeeming it. That requires mainstreaming his ideas successful governmental discourse. Those who basal by his ideas indispensable besides reason projects specified arsenic the ecologically disastrous Great Nicobar Project that the Union authorities is pushing.”

(As told to Sobhana K. Nair)

Stephen Alter, author

Alter, of American descent, was calved in Mussoorie, Uttarakhand, and overmuch of his penning focuses connected the Himalayan region.

“Anyone who writes astir biodiversity contiguous cannot disregard David Attenborough’s enactment arsenic a naturalist, writer and tv host. What has influenced maine astir is the mode successful which helium presents science, peculiarly biology, arsenic an enactment of storytelling. When I was researching and penning my caller book, The Cobra’s Gaze: Exploring India’s Wild Heritage, his attack to wildlife and chaotic places was surely an inspiration. Without anthropomorphising the taxon helium describes, Attenborough is capable to narrate a compelling communicative that captures a viewer’s imaginativeness and conveys a consciousness of wonderment for each forms of beingness connected this planet.”

(As told to Julie Merin Varughese)

Neha Sinha, conservation biologist and writer of Wild Capital

“David Attenborough’s comments connected reducing colonisation successful what helium described arsenic ‘Asia and Africa’ appeared careless and code deaf. As helium calls for nuance successful the mode we look astatine a creature, we request a akin nuance for the places that big galore of these creatures: the processing world. Having said that, David’s persistent enactment connected creating appreciation for biodiversity – including wildlife that is seen arsenic odd, venomous, slimy, disfigured – is pathbreaking. He asks lone for your attraction arsenic helium tells you wherefore thing unloved is worthy valuing, adjacent loving, and this successful a mode reflects immoderate of the modern jurisprudence debates astir the Rights of Nature movement, which telephone for a afloat acceptance of an carnal oregon earthy feature, with each its bristles, characteristics, and its inalienable close to thrive.”

(As told to Rosella Stephen)

Ranjit Lal, Nature and wildlife writer and author

“I’ve been seeing truthful galore of his programmes and I’ve got a mates of his books: The Living Planet and The Life of Birds. What leaves an content is his benignant of breadth and coverage: everything from the bottommost of the water to the apical of the sky. His programmes are precise good researched, and he’s a precise bully storyteller. The champion portion is that each his enactment ever ends connected a enactment of optimism that ‘we are successful a atrocious way, but we tin inactive bash amended and alteration things’, helium doesn’t termination that hope, which is what a batch of environmentalists thin to do, calling it doomsday. His benignant was dilatory motion, he’d usage deep-sea cameras, and drones, instrumentality aerial shots. The cameras they utilized are exceptional, particularly portion shooting adjacent ups. Like the mode helium gets into the dens of termites and shows what’s happening inside, it’s rather amazing. You learnt a batch from what helium showed. One should beryllium down with a notebook and instrumentality notes from his programmes. He has gone to places and shown things which 1 ne'er knew of. It’s precise bully education, you thin to look more, commencement questioning more. And dissimilar successful tourism, wildlife filmmakers/photographers, who person been truthful agelong with these animals, cognize however to support region and respect the wildlife. Attenborough manages to seizure a balance. And everything from his discoveries was yet pointing towards clime change, it being 1 of the biggest villains successful the full process. That we (humans) are causing it. He had to spell into that.”

(As told to Tanushree Ghosh)

Sandesh Kadur, Wildlife movie shaper and conservation photographer

“From arsenic aboriginal arsenic I tin retrieve watching thing connected television, I retrieve my father, Dr. Vishwanath Kadur, bringing the Life connected Earth VHS cassette. And ever since, I’ve been watching documentaries by Sir David Attenborough. Everything from Life connected Earth, Planet Earth 1, Planet Earth 2, Life of Birds, Life successful the Undergrowth, Life successful Cold Blood. He introduced america to taxon beyond the realm of my ain knowledge, took america into exotic places, heavy successful the Amazon oregon Antarctica, the Galápagos. If you watch Planet Earth 2, there’s a series of lizard, the marine iguana, being chased by these racer snakes. One of the astir fascinating wildlife carnal behaviour sequences; and a unsocial series that had ne'er been filmed before. Sir David filmed successful Rajasthan, and different parts, wherever he’s exposed immoderate of the beauteous stories of co-existence successful India, of however animals and radical unrecorded successful this precarious balance. And helium showed that in The Life of Mammals (2002-03). Whenever I’m retired determination distant for filming, his dependable is ever successful my head. He’s precise conscious that this beauteous satellite astir america is nether threat. In his astir caller documentary called Ocean (2025), Sir David takes america into the fragile satellite nether the waters, and shows that our mundane manner habits person affected the oceans successful a large way. Ocean has made a immense interaction astir the world. This is the benignant of domino effect a almighty storyteller tin person and power the satellite to marque amended decisions.”

(As told to Tanushree Ghosh)

Rohan Chakravarty, cartoonist and columnist

“David Attenborough’s documentaries were precise influential successful shaping the wildlife-centric position of my cartoon bid Green Humour. The astir profound facet astir his presumption for maine is that the spark of enthusiasm a chaotic carnal brought successful his eyes was conscionable the same, whether it was a bug oregon a fox, a mole oregon a gorilla, and whether helium was successful his 40s oregon his 90s!”

(As told to Rosella Stephen)

Romulus Whitaker, herpetologist and conservationist

“In 2005, I had the honour of receiving a Whitley Fund for Nature grant for establishing the Agumbe Rainforest Research Station successful South India. And the different honour was the accidental to conscionable and informally chat with Sir David. I had a cardinal questions, and I remember his question to me, “I’m not comfy with venomous snakes, and I wonderment however you tin beryllium truthful casual with king cobras; they seem truthful alien, however bash you get crossed to them?” I stumbled done what I thought was an intelligent effect and we had an enjoyable chat astir rainforests. Aside from being awestruck by the unthinkable wildlife programs helium has hosted implicit decades, I couldn’t defy asking him astir the eventual drama amusement Monty Python’s Flying Circus which, arsenic the caller controller, helium commissioned for BBC Two successful 1969. He said “Yes, radical were looking for thing wacky and determination it was”.

(As told to Rosella Stephen)

Anita Mani, editor, writer, birder and laminitis of Indian Pitta

Indian Pitta is simply a publication imprint with Juggernaut that focuses connected earthy past and avian topics

“I encountered David Attenborough rather late. A mates of decades ago, erstwhile my lad was 4 oregon five, helium took to wildlife instinctively. He started watching Attenborough’s documentaries connected television, and we each got hooked. We bought his books and DVDs — I emotion The Life of Birds because the bid [which tracks 300 species] made maine spot birds successful a full caller mode — and they catalysed our reasoning astir the earthy world, the diverseness of species, and the quality interaction connected wildlife. Attenborough’s work is very accessible. He took wildlife retired of the container and made it thing that everybody could enjoy. If I could meet Attenborough today, I would inquire him what his imaginativeness for the adjacent 100 years is. He is nothing if not a realist, and I would very overmuch similar to cognize what helium thinks is the way backmost to keeping the satellite together. Attenborough did galore of his archetypal explorations into clime situation and the sixth extinction. Now, these are issues we person to woody with. Did you cognize successful India lone 5% of our geographic country is protected? The adjacent period should beryllium astir restraint and restoration. If we don’t privation Attenborough’s videos to go archaeological artifacts, we request to bash thing precise fast.”

(As told to Surya Praphulla Kumar)

Asad Rahmani, Ornithologist and former manager of BNHS (Bombay Natural History Society)

“I’ve been funny successful the environment since I was 12. I utilized to voraciously work the National Geographic and articles by naturalist M. Krishnan. David Attenborough came into my beingness overmuch later, successful the 80s, erstwhile astir each location successful India had a TV, and we could ticker his documentaries. What is astonishing astir his enactment is that helium covered astir each the species, not lone the glamorous ample vertebrates. His presentations were based connected bully science, and helium covered astir the full satellite — from the Arctic to the Antarctic and from the Himalayas to the bottommost of the Mariana Trench. Attenborough’s is a singular dependable [much like that of the precocious English primatologist Jane Goodall’s and Indian conservationist Valmik Thapar’s], and I consciousness not galore radical volition have his global motivation authorization successful the future. While his work celebrates protected wilderness, the planetary conservation now, I feel, indispensable include negotiating with dense quality populations. In India, we person to find our ain conservation exemplary due to the fact that determination are hardly immoderate areas wherever determination is nary quality presence. But interestingly successful our country, our traditions, civilization and religions besides assistance america marque country for wildlife.”

(As told to Surya Praphulla Kumar)

Parveen Shaikh, scientist with the Bombay Natural History Society (BNHS)

Shaikh and Barkha Subba are the winners of the 2026 Whitley Award, besides known arsenic the Green Oscars. Shaikh won it for her enactment successful conserving the endangered Indian skimmer (Rhynchops albicollis) on the Chambal River; and Darjeeling’s Subba for her conservation enactment connected the Himalayan salamander.

“Sir David Attenborough was 1 of the wildlife and situation communicators who inspired maine to go a conservationist. I retrieve increasing up watching documentaries like Planet Earth and what came crossed was however helium managed to simplify the connection of conservation and wildlife to his audience. Attenborough, on with different starring voices successful wildlife conservation, specified arsenic Jane Goodall, has inspired armies of young conservationists and scientists. His documentaries awed young viewers into processing a consciousness of wonderment astir the earthy world. Sometimes it is conscionable arsenic important to amusement the pristine quality of quality to animate radical into getting progressive successful conservation. And the aboriginal of conservation initiatives volition besides request to person communities having a overmuch greater say.”

(As told to Rohan D. Premkumar)