Aniket Thopate, Shashank Raul, Mandar Ghumare and Viraj Ghaisas have been photographing the forests of Matheran for six years now. The 25-year-olds have known each other since school but their real bond comes from their love of nature. "We live in Badlapur, from where Matheran is easily accessible. We had been visiting the hill station since we were children but our interest in the region's biodiversity grew only over the last few years," Thopate says. "Mandar and Shashank were snake rescuers and eventually Viraj and I got interested in it too. Over the years, our area of interest expanded from snakes to other creatures."

None of them have a formal education in biology or conservation. None, with the exception of Thopate, have trained in photography either. Yet, the four are the go-to team for everything related to the biodiversity of Matheran. "Over the years, we've taught ourselves by reading research papers by credible biologists, studying the various species closely and looking up the Internet," Thopate says.