Meet Pushpendra Singh, our General Manager at Bandhavgarh Jungle Lodge, a man of few words and who has been the backbone of the Jungle Lodge from over 25 years. He joined our company in 1995 and under the able guidance of the owner Mr. Pradeep Sankhala, learned the ropes of the hospitality industry. With a wealth of experience now he manages the local staff and our lodge as well as personally caters to all guest requirements.
His dedication, integrity and contribution towards the Jungle Lodge is unsurpassable, he is known and respected by one and all in Bandhavgarh. Though he hails from Jaipur, Rajasthan, Bandhavgarh is his home away from home! Today you can catch up with him over a cup of tea and listen to his in numerous stories along with his memories of Bandhavgarh National Park and its world famous tigers! His storytelling will keep you mesmerized, some of the best kept secrets and wild old tales from the past !!!!
Having the largest green cover with the maximum number of Tigers in India, Madhya Pradesh is indeed a place for nature lovers and wildlife enthusiasts. Time to time Nature calls many into its lap, but only few are privileged to have their abode in it, Sadhvi and Harshvardhan are the lucky ones who come from two of the most celebrated green spots of central India. Sadhvi’s Panna is picturesque whereas Harshvarshan’s Bandhavgarh is dramatic and now together, in a state of an absolute solace and uninterrupted sanctity, making the Bandhavgarh jungle lodge, an ideal stay.
Having years of experience of working at some of the finest Safari lodges of India, Sadhvi and Harshvardhan are now putting up their best to make the stay memorable for others. Starting off as Naturalists in Central India, their adventures brought them to Kanha, then Panna and Pench, before ending up at Bandhavgarh. Today, Sadhvi and Harsh manage Bandhavgarh Jungle Lodge, a wildlife Camp located in the heart of Tiger County, Bandhavgarh National Park. Known for its highest density of Tigers and a paradise for Photographers.
From tracking Tigers in India to tracking Rhinos on foot in Africa. This adventurous couple is always on a lookout for something new and exciting! Sadhvi and Harsh’s passion for wildlife and people is quite evident and they host guests with such love that one instantly feels at home. Listen to their adventure stories while enjoying bonfire, their experiences and recommendations are always appreciated by guests, they never hesitate when it comes to going out of their way in order to delight guests, they love talking about wildlife destinations they’ve been to, their stories, and culture. Sadhvi and Harsh’s infectious love for Central Indian wildlife, communities living around has helped them greatly to learn and grow together.
Guests who have spent time with them once have never thought twice to visit them again wherever they are.
A Microbiologist & Business Management graduate, he has always believed the forests to be his true calling !
He would like his career to involve exploring the forests, giving back to the communities and landscape and introducing people to the treasure that is our natural heritage. With an affinity towards conservation apart from tourism, he has also volunteered his time engaging with children living around the fringes of the forest, talking to them about the biodiversity that exists in their proximity while also exchanging stories & folklore and his love of the forests.
He is a certified instructor by the Madhya Pradesh Eco Development Board & Madhya Pradesh Forest Department for creation and conducting of experiential learning activities for children. He describes his dream job to be introducing people to everything in the wilderness which is not subject to tigers alone . Aniket visited Bandhavgarh for the very first time in 2009 as a tourist and hasn’t looked back since. A self taught naturalist, he has worked towards curating experiences as a destination expert, promoting conservation & community based tourism in the region.
A Smiling face with so much warmth and for that reason, Suresh is someone whom you’d want to meet the most when you’re at the lodge. Officially he heads the housekeeping team, but it would be very unfair if he is called anything less than an all-rounder. From basic maintenance to, storekeeping, to procurement and helping the service team whenever required. Suresh does it all, like a pro.
He is a local and has been working with Bandhavgarh Jungle Lodge for over twenty years, he too joined when the lodge was quite new, without any prior training in hospitality. With the help of lodge management’s effort to train him and his hard work has brought him a very long way, to be the man that he is today, we couldn’t be more proud of him and can’t imagine our team without him.
Meet Lallu – Lallu has been working with Bandhavgarh Jungle Lodge for 22 years and is one of the important pillars of the Jungle Lodge family. He joined when there were hardly any lodges around the National Park and there was obviously no way of getting trained into hospitality. However, one thing always stands out in our staff is “warmth” and the genuineness makes them special.
Lallu has been able to send his daughter to a nearby town to learn the computer and Son goes to an English medium school. Lallu is always there to greet and assist when you come back from Safaris. Have you met him already?
It’s 50 years since Kailash Sankhala took the helm at India’s Project Tiger - and his family wildlife lodge is still doing a roaring trade, finds Tamara Hinson. MTEN minutes into a stroll along Bandhavgarh National Park’s boundary when I start questioning my keenness to see the wildlife. My companion is naturalist Simranjit, whose stories amuse and terrify in equal parts. He chuckles when he realises I mistook the flimsy fence for some kind of barrier.
Alarm calls from monkeys grew increasingly shrill, the shrieks of peacocks ever louder. The jungle was on red alert. Such animal warnings about predators are just what you want to hear if you’re searching for a big cat in India: in this drum roll of agitation, our 4x4 rounded a corner and came to an abrupt halt. In front of us, a tiger had stepped out of the undergrowth.
Poner Singh is a stubborn man. When India’s National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) invited him to swap his hand-to-mouth existence in the teak forests of the Satpura Tiger Reserve for a free house and five acres of farmland on the outside, the father of two declined.
Sankhala is certain I’ll see a tiger. He tells me this as we bump along the dirt roads of Bandhavgarh National Park, India’s tiger country – 1,540km2 of swaying grassland and tropical forest where the mighty Bengal tiger roams freely.
Tamara Hinson heads to Bandhavgarh National Park, one of India’s best conservation success stories, in search of big cats.
From the moment I enter Bandhavgarh National Park, it’s clear the wildlife is never far away.
