A nine-year-old Indian girl, Shreyovi Mehta, has achieved runner-up status in the prestigious Wildlife Photographer of the Year competition, organized by the Natural History Museum (NHM) in London. Mehta, a fifth-grade student from Faridabad near Delhi, captured a remarkable image of two peafowl during a morning walk in Keoladev National Park, Bharatpur, Rajasthan.
Her award-winning photo, titled “In the Spotlight,” features peahens silhouetted beneath a tree canopy. Among nearly 60,000 entries from 117 countries, Mehta’s photograph stood out in the “10 Years and Under” category of the 60th edition of the competition.
In an Instagram post, Mehta expressed her immense joy and gratitude, thanking her parents, Kahini Ghosh and Shivang Mehta, who supported her passion for wildlife photography. Her father, a photographer himself, helped her capture the image.
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Mehta aspires to photograph India’s national animal, the tiger, and hopes to gain similar recognition in the future. She will receive her medal at an award ceremony at the NHM on October 8.
Kathy Moran, chair of the judging panel, highlighted the evolution of the competition, noting the diversity and representation of the natural world in the photographs. The Wildlife Photographer of the Year exhibition will be held at the NHM from October 11, 2024, to June 29, 2025.