Here’s Prof Aparajita’s sage of an unexpected detour on the Kenyan safari that led to a breathtaking encounter with a lioness, capturing the raw power and beauty of nature—exclusively for Different Truths.

The day before we were to fly out of Kenya was a rather frustrating one. We had been told that there could be a wildebeest migration that day. We had woken up at five and trundled over to the Mara River in our Safari Land Rover, hopeful of the momentous sighting of the entire herd crossing over.

When we reached there, our hopes rose when we saw a multitude of wildebeest as well as zebra milling about on the other bank of the river. But a batch of enormous crocodiles in the water became the proverbial rain on our parade. The wildebeest and the zebras were completely wary of the monsters in the water and just refused to cross.

Crestfallen, our group split into two— those tenacious ones who wanted to stick around the river, still hopeful to see and shoot the Great Crossing. But four of the more impatient ones— I being the one leading this dissenting little group-packed ourselves in a Safari vehicle and pushed off in search of better luck. But things seemed wry as miles of driving around in the scorching Mara sun yielded nothing but a few disinterested-looking Thomson’s Gazelle standing around.

Then came the moment!

We chanced upon a pride of lions that were lazing there in the sun. It looked like they had just eaten. There were both, males as well as females in the pride. As we watched quietly, with our camera shutters clicking busily away, a lioness walked away towards the back of our vehicle. Then another followed. Dennis, our driver, in a low voice, told me that if I looked round from the other side of our vehicle, I would be able to see them behind our Rover.

I was sitting with my camera on the right-hand-side back seat of the vehicle, which was a little unusual for me because my favourite perch usually is the front navigator seat with the top open so that I can stand on the seat to shoot my pictures whenever I need to. But at that moment, being in the right-back seat, I had my camera trained through the open left window on the side opposite to where I was sitting.

On Dennis’s remark, I turned around casually with my camera, expecting to see the lionesses that had walked away to the right, some distance away from our vehicle. What was my surprise and shock then, when I saw not just the two who had walked away, but three of them – for they had joined a magnificent male who had probably already been there, unnoticed by us somehow.

Then there was that moment when the lioness, barely three feet away on the ground from me in my seat with the wall of the vehicle completely down, just stared at me out of those beautifully deadly amber eyes. And I just stared back at her for what seemed like an eternity.

Thoughts were racing at the back of my mind even as I could not tear my eyes away from her fixed gaze. Should I look away? What if she feels I’m trying to dominate? Would she, feeling threatened probably, spring towards my seat, which, with the wall completely down, had no bar from her?

Shouldn’t I capture this moment on my camera? 

But then my mind decided to allow my mortal eyes to feast on her look if she kept her eyes on me. I revelled in the sheer beauty and wonder of the moment before my digital one perpetuated it – in what I knew would be a photograph I’d prize my whole life!

Then, having her fill of looking at me, and probably assuring herself that I posed no threat to her queenly self, she averted her eyes just a little. And I raised my camera to my eyes and voila! This shot happened!

Every time I look at the picture now, it is with a fond memory of the excitement of locking eyes with a magnificent creation of nature – the terrible beauty of the 400 pounds of sheer power!

Photos by the author

Prof. Aparajita Hazra

Prof. Aparajita Hazra, Dean of the Faculty of Arts and Professor, Department of English, Diamond Harbour Women’s University, India. She is a visiting professor at the University of Sheffield, England. A gold medalist and National Scholar, she has published articles in various journals and lectured in nine countries: India, France, Ireland, Macau, Malaysia, Canada, New Zealand, Georgia, and Scotland. She has authored seven books. She has received several academic awards and accolades.

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