Interview Summary
Pradeep Krishen shares insights into his role in creating the Visitor Centre at Rao Jodha Desert Rock Park, Jodhpur and other ecological restoration projects. The Visitor Centre, inaugurated in 2012, involved transforming a historic gateway and focusing on contextual designs using local sandstone and desert landscapes. Despite initial challenges, such as recruiting motivated docents, Krishen highlights successes in engaging visitors with exhibits, folk concerts, and special features like raised beds for desert plants.
He reflects on the park’s ability to attract special interest groups, generate revenue through a nursery project, and break even during the pandemic, though overall footfall remained low. Krishen also discusses the successful Kishan Bagh Sand Dune Park in Jaipur, which combines engaging design with native plant conservation to attract significant visitorship.
Looking ahead, Krishen says, he plans to focus on writing and educational materials, while emphasising the need for committed stakeholders and community involvement to sustain ecological restoration efforts.
(00:00:35) Creating the Visitor Centre in Rao Jodha Desert Rock Park, developing special exhibits and engaging visitors
(00:13:25) Visitors to the Desert Rock Park
(00:22:24) Economic costs of managing the Park
(00:24:58) Community involvement and future plans
(00:29:46) Background to how the Kishan Bagh project came about
(00:43:06) Challenges in managing the Kishan Bagh project
(00:51:14) “Failed” ecological restoration projects and future plans
(00:57:16) Current projects
Dates
- Creation: 2023-06-22
Creator
- Krishen, Pradip (Interviewee, Person)
- Venkatram, Preeti Shree (Interviewer, Person)
- Venkatram, Preeti Shree (Processing Archivist, Person)
Conditions Governing Access
Level of Access: Open/Online
Biography
Born in New Delhi 1949, Pradip Krishen is a well-known Indian filmmaker and environmentalist. He did his schooling in Nairobi, New Delhi and Ajmer and went on to study history at St. Stephen’s College, University of Delhi, and modern history at Balliol College, University of Oxford.
He began his career as a professor at Ramjas College, University of Delhi. However, his fascination with cinema led him to transition to filmmaking in 1975, emerging as a prominent figure in India’s parallel cinema movement. He went on to direct three award-winning acclaimed feature films- Massey Sahib (1985), In Which Annie Gives It Those Ones (1989), and Electric Moon (1991).
Despite his cinematic success, disillusionment with industry challenges prompted him to leave filmmaking and in 1993, Krishen shifted focus to field botany and ecological restoration. Starting in the Pachmarhi jungles in Madhya Pradesh, he immersed himself in identifying trees, later documenting Delhi’s flora and leading public tree walks. A pioneer in ecological gardening, Krishen spearheaded projects like the Rao Jodha Desert Rock Park in Jodhpur, Rajasthan, and the Kishan Bagh sand dune restoration in Jaipur, opened as a public park in 2021.
Krishen’s books, including the bestseller Trees of Delhi: A Field Guide (2006), Jungle Trees of Central India: A Field Guide for Tree Spotters (2014), and Abha Mahal Bagh: A Garden of Wild Plants from the Thar Desert (2019), are celebrated for their accessible approach to India’s ecology.
His work continues with projects like creating a wildflower meadow in Gwalior and riverbank restoration on the Chambal River, combining science with sustainability.
Extent
61 Minutes
Language of Materials
English
Repository Details
Part of the Archives at NCBS Repository
National Centre for Biological Sciences - Tata Institute of Fundamental Research
Bangalore Karnataka 560065 India
+9180 6717 6010
+9180 6717 6011
archives@ncbs.res.in