Ashwika Kapur on 24 October 2014 became the first Indian woman to win prestigious Wildscreen Panda Award. She won the coveted wildlife photography award in best newcomer category for her film, Sirocco - how a dud became a stud.
Panda award also known as Green Oscar of the natural history and wildlife film industry was announced at the annual Wildscreen Film Festival held at Bristol, UK.
Panda award also known as Green Oscar of the natural history and wildlife film industry was announced at the annual Wildscreen Film Festival held at Bristol, UK.
About the film Sirocco - how a dud became a stud
Ashwika’s film is a tale of a Kakapo parrot named Sirocco, which is perhaps the only bird in the world to have bagged a government job. Sirocco, a male bird was appointed as the official Spokesbird for Conservation in New Zealand who helped in conservation advocacy on social media.
The film was a solo project that was single-handedly managed by Ashwika. For the film, she performed the film’s scientific research, scripting, camera work, editing and music direction.
The film Sirocco - how a dud became a stud was competing against two other nominees namely Pride (from USA) and We Are Rhino (from United Kingdom). The 2014 Windscreen Film Festival received 488 entries from 42 countries.
About Kakapo Parrot
Kakapo parrot is classified as a critically endangered species since 2012 (known population of less than 150) on the IUCN Red List. It is a nocturnal, flightless, and ground-dwelling species of parrot. This Kakapo (night parrot in the Maori language) bird is found in New Zealand and is known as one of the longest living birds and in 2013, the bird was voted as the world’s favourite species by 14000 people from 162 countries.
About Ashwika Kapur
• 27-year-old, Ashwika Kapur based in Kolkata has graduated in Science and Natural History Filmmaking from the University of Otago, New Zealand
• At present, she is involved in the filming and production of two wildlife shows in India for Animal Planet
Previous winners from India include wildlife filmmaker and conservationist Mike Pandey, the Bedi Brothers (Ajay and Vijay) and Dusty Foot Productions.
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