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By:

Dr. Abhilash Dawre

19 March 2025 at 10:48:41 pm

A tiny scorpion, a giant achievement

Badlapur’s Sitaram Raul wins global photography honour Badlapur: A photograph capturing a scorpion digging into desert sand to create a shelter has earned Badlapur-based wildlife photographer Sitaram Dinkar Raul international recognition. Raul won the ‘Invertebrate Behaviour’ category at the prestigious Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2026 competition, organised by London’s Natural History Museum. He was honoured at a ceremony in London on October 13, where he also delivered his...

A tiny scorpion, a giant achievement

Badlapur’s Sitaram Raul wins global photography honour Badlapur: A photograph capturing a scorpion digging into desert sand to create a shelter has earned Badlapur-based wildlife photographer Sitaram Dinkar Raul international recognition. Raul won the ‘Invertebrate Behaviour’ category at the prestigious Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2026 competition, organised by London’s Natural History Museum. He was honoured at a ceremony in London on October 13, where he also delivered his acceptance speech in Marathi, taking his mother tongue to an international platform. The competition received more than 65,000 photographs from 121 countries. Raul’s achievement came through a photograph of a Buthacus species scorpion digging into the sand to create a shelter in the Rajasthan desert. Raul’s journey began in Badlapur in 2012, when his involvement in wildlife rescue operations gradually developed into a passion for photography. While rescuing wild animals and releasing them into their natural habitats, he felt the need to document these encounters through photographs. This prompted him to take up photography, which eventually became a dedicated pursuit. As his interest in wildlife photography grew, Raul began studying the work of established photographers to understand international photography techniques and the finer details of capturing an effective image. He focused on identifying mistakes in his own work and improving his skills through consistent practice. He had been following the Natural History Museum’s international competition for several years. After gaining confidence in his work over the preceding five years, he decided to participate. However, his primary objective was not simply to win an award, but to have his photographs displayed at the prestigious competition and viewed by people across the world. The photograph that brought Raul international recognition was captured during a visit to the Rajasthan desert, where he had gone to photograph the stars. While setting up his camera, he spotted a Buthacus species scorpion in the light of a torch. The scorpion was digging into the sand to create a shelter. Capturing the scorpion’s behaviour clearly proved challenging. Although his initial photographs were turning out well, they did not adequately convey the action he wanted to document. Raul then experimented with an off-camera flash, adjusted the direction of the light and tried different techniques. After several attempts, he successfully captured the moment when the scorpion was digging into the sand. The photograph eventually won him the international award. Raul also credits artist Suresh Bhosale with playing an important role in his artistic development. According to Raul, Bhosale taught him painting, which significantly benefited his fine-art photography. Studying painting helped him develop a different perspective when observing a scene, improve his observation skills and cultivate an interest in art history. He said these skills proved valuable in his photographic work. His experience with macro photography, the use of different types of flashes in forest settings and experimentation with lighting also contributed to his development. His journey reinforced the importance of combining technical skills with a thorough understanding of the subject and careful observation of wildlife behaviour. Raul expressed gratitude to his parents for their support and acknowledged the encouragement he received from his friends in Badlapur. He also described Bhosale as his mentor, crediting him with helping shape his artistic vision. Beyond the award-winning photograph, Raul’s decision to deliver his acceptance speech in Marathi became a distinctive moment in his journey. While studying previous award ceremonies, he observed that many photographers delivered their speeches in English. He decided that if he ever reached the international stage, he would give prominence to his own language. At the award ceremony in London, Raul fulfilled that intention by expressing his thoughts in Marathi. His decision allowed him to celebrate his achievement while preserving the identity and pride associated with his mother tongue. Raul’s success marks a significant milestone in a journey that began with wildlife rescue operations in Badlapur in 2012. What started as an effort to document wildlife encounters eventually led him to victory in an international photography competition. From observing a scorpion in the Rajasthan desert to receiving an honour in London, his journey reflects his dedication to wildlife photography, patience, artistic development and commitment to his craft. By choosing to speak in Marathi on the international stage, he also maintained a strong connection to his roots.

Come On, India, Let's Football!

Writer: Bhalchandra Chorghade
Bhalchandra Chorghade
Jul 1
3 min read

When football’s new minnows dream big, India stands still.

The ongoing FIFA World Cup has produced one of the most compelling stories in modern football. Nations once dismissed as outsiders are now sharing the world’s biggest stage with traditional powerhouses. Tiny Cape Verde, Curaçao, Jordan and Uzbekistan are making their World Cup debuts. DR Congo has returned after more than five decades, while countries such as Iraq, Bosnia and Herzegovina, South Africa and New Zealand have also forced their way into the tournament.


The question every Indian football fan must ask is uncomfortable but unavoidable: if these nations can qualify, why can’t India?


This is not about population. India has over 1.4 billion people. Cape Verde has barely half a million. Curaçao has fewer than two lakh residents. Uzbekistan has around 37 million people; Jordan, about 12 million. India has every conceivable demographic advantage. Yet, when the World Cup begins, Indian fans once again become passionate supporters of Brazil, Argentina, England or Portugal because their own national team is nowhere to be seen.


For decades, Indian football administrators have found convenient excuses. Cricket’s dominance. Lack of infrastructure. Poor weather. Limited sporting culture. None of these explanations survive scrutiny anymore.


Croatia reached a World Cup final with a population smaller than Hyderabad. Morocco became the first African nation to reach the semi-finals in 2022. Japan and South Korea transformed themselves into global football powers through long-term planning. Now Uzbekistan, Jordan and Cape Verde have shown that determined football development matters far more than population size or GDP.


Governance Failure

The domestic football ecosystem remains fragmented. Grassroots development exists largely on paper. School football lacks continuity. Youth academies are too few and often disconnected from professional clubs. State associations function with varying degrees of efficiency, while the professional pyramid remains shallow. Coaching standards are improving but nowhere near the scale required for a country of India’s size. Most talented youngsters still have limited access to quality coaching before their teenage years, by which time the developmental gap with leading football nations has already widened.


The Indian Super League undoubtedly improved infrastructure, television visibility and professionalism. But a successful league does not automatically produce a successful national team. The league has too often prioritised short-term commercial interests over systematic player development. Young Indian footballers frequently struggle for meaningful playing time, while promotion and relegation uncertainties have weakened the competitive pyramid beneath the top division.


Another problem is the absence of a unified national football vision. Countries that qualify consistently work on 10- to 20-year roadmaps. India often changes direction with every administrative transition. Projects begin with great fanfare and quietly disappear before delivering results. Football development cannot depend on personalities; it requires institutions.


Talent identification is another glaring weakness. Millions of children play football across the Northeast, Goa, Kerala, West Bengal, Jammu and Kashmir, Karnataka and several tribal regions. Yet countless gifted players never enter structured development pathways. A nation of India’s scale should have thousands of certified scouts working across districts. Instead, talent frequently depends on luck rather than an organised system.


The roadmap is neither mysterious nor impossible. Football must become an integral part of school education, with structured inter-school and inter-district competitions. Every professional club should operate genuine youth academies linked to local communities. Coaching education must expand dramatically. State leagues should become stronger and financially sustainable. The national federation must function with transparency, stability and accountability. Above all, youth development, not administrative politics, must become the central mission.


The expansion of the World Cup to 48 teams has created more qualification opportunities than ever before. If India cannot qualify even under this expanded format, it will expose the depth of the crisis rather than the strength of the competition.


India has already proved in cricket, hockey, chess, badminton and athletics that excellence is possible when talent meets planning. Football should be no different.


The real tragedy is not that India has never qualified for a FIFA World Cup. The real tragedy is that after nearly eight decades of independence, with enormous resources and one of the world’s largest youth populations, India still lacks a credible pathway to get there.


Until administrators begin treating World Cup qualification as a national project rather than a distant dream, Indian football will remain exactly where it has been for generations—not on the pitch, but in the stands, cheering for someone else’s success.

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