Feathers in his cap

When Delhi boy and birdwatcher Aman Sharma’s picture screaming at India Gate at a march for clean air was shared by actor Leonardo DiCaprio on his Instagram in 2019, Sharma did not imagine what the future held — a series of collaborations with Indian celebrities such as Dia Mirza, Sameera Reddy, Bhumi Pednekar and Trinetra Haldar Gummaraju.

From talking about homosexuality existing in the animal kingdom and finding pied hornbills, purple-rumped sunbirds, and crow pheasants at Reddy’s home to discussing responsible consumption with Mirza, Sharma has been on a roll since last year.

“Dia and I became friends on Instagram. She would send me pictures of birds that would come to her balcony in Mumbai which I could not find in Delhi. When I visited her, I found that she had created a balcony garden and grown many flowering plants that invites more than 30 bird species,”

Sharma says, excited about the fact that while any message he shares reaches one million of his Instagram followers, “it instantly reaches 5.5 million more!” when Mirza shares it. As the 21-year-old plans to contact more celebrities for his informative video series, Alia Bhatt’s home, he says, is a target. “I’d love to cover her home as she’s a nature lover.”

As free as a bird

Sharma, a Swadesh Samman awardee, had been an animal and nature lover since childhood. “Whenever I wasn’t at school, I would ask my parents to take me to Delhi’s Aravalli Biodiversity Park, Sultanpur Bird Sanctuary, Okhla Bird Sanctuary and Hauz Khas Deer Park. I was hooked on Discovery, Animal Planet and National Geographic,” he says.

However, it was at the age of 13 that his interest in birdwatching was piqued when a Bulbul made a nest in his balcony. “I would wake up at 5 am to silently observe her get food for the babies, feed and nurture them. I saw her eggs hatch into chicks and then fly. I almost felt like a second parent!” Sharma says.

His mother’s college-time camera gave him the push to shoot birds. Eventually, Nikon’s youngest ambassador ended up taking photographs of 20-plus species of birds, including the paradise flycatcher, hornbill, woodpecker, and the oriental honey buzzard, from his balcony. “I showed those pictures to my biology teacher in school, and she thought I had taken it from the internet! It was hard for her to believe that so many birds live in Delhi. People don’t realise this but Delhi is the second most bird-rich capital in the world,” Sharma adds.

He adds that birds are an indicator of a healthy ecosystem. “Their existence means that your soil, trees and forests are healthy. They’re also important for the ecosystem as there are a lot of species of Indian trees that cannot be planted by humans but can grow through the seeds dispersed by birds,” he says. Apart from birds, Sharma has also trained his lens on the lions of Gir National Park, the tigers of Ranthambore and Kanha National Parks and the leopards of Jhalana in Jaipur.

Rewilding at home

During the lockdown of 2020, Sharma embarked on a rewilding home project. He built a terrace garden using the Miyawaki method — planting two to four different types of indigenous trees within every square metre, to attract bees, butterflies and birds.

“I ended up planting more than 500 species of plants such as the curry leaves, lime shrub, morning glory, hibiscus, milkweed, bryophyllum and more. These are mostly flower and fruit-bearing plants.”

Sharma is currently pursuing environmental studies at the University of Pennsylvania in the US. He feels that our education system has not taught us to look out for nature in urban spaces. “Humans were made to coexist with nature and live in a natural world. I aim to tune people’s senses to actively pursue wildlife and nature. Currently at college, I’m trying to get more students involved in birdwatching and take them on a bird walk in a jungle,” he says.

What’s next? He wants to do a reforestation drive in Delhi to create an “ideal” habitat for birds! “In the West, a lot of people think of India as a backward, polluted, poor and conservative country. While we have been projected only for our low points, no one talks about our high points such as Delhi being the second most bird-rich capital city in the world, how India has managed to save tigers globally and is still the only country in the world to have Asiatic lions. I want to highlight that side of India,” he says.