Sadaa Sayed

It’s been a week since I lost my father but it already feels like an eternity. Every passing moment feels heavier than the one before, weighed down by the silence he’s left behind and the pain of his absence. He quietly gave up so much of his own life just so I could live mine, so I could pursue my dreams. At a time when the world of cinema wasn’t a safe or easy space for young girls like me and especially not for someone from families like ours, he stood firmly besides me. Since my mother, a devoted government employee, couldn’t take long leaves, he took it upon himself to accompany me, even spending countless nights on sets while I worked. Just to ensure my safety and he did that for years. Once my mother could take over, he returned to his roots & first love: medicine. He reopened a small clinic, started his practice from scratch in a new city, not to build a career, or for recognition or wealth, but with the only intention to serve those in need. In the days since his passing, I’ve heard story after story about the countless lives he touched, not only through his selfless work in medicine but the way he genuinely cared for every other person who crossed path with him. Even all animals found safety and love in his care. He always told me and everyone how proud he was to be my father. But today…
I am the one who is proud.
So deeply proud to be his daughter. Proud of the life he lived and the legacy he leaves behind.
Proud of the love and help he gave so freely to everyone around. He has left behind not just a void in our hearts, but in the hearts of every life he gently impacted with his compassion and selflessness. The immense love and respect he earned lives on. He was truly a gem. Rare, radiant and irreplaceable… Miss you so so much Pappa… May you rest in eternal peace… 🙏

Part-2 || MAYA v/s ROMA || 7th May, 2023 They came, they saw, they conquered. But they were defeated and they were exiled. But one queen stood the test of time - the doyen of illusion and chicanery, she always dons a few tricks up her sleeve, even when she seemed to have performed her greatest trick yet. Maya means ‘that which is not’ and I realised the true meaning when she evaded me twice during this safari. But when you are absorbed in her, Maya is bound to happen, quite literally. Known to be courting and thwarting advances of the biggest, fiercest and the dominant of the males of Tadoba, it is not so common for Maya to confront wandering tigresses in her territory. Though not her first, and definitely not her last, Maya chased a dispirited Roma, just the way she (Maya) had a face off with her (Roma) mother (Choti Tara) a few years ago. The truest scion of the Panderpauni line of Katrina-Vasanti-Nira and perhaps the greatest show-woman of the last decade in the tiger world, Maya is not just a queen and a legend but the greatest (if not one of the greatest) of her tribe; her ambition, her dominance, her charm, her tyranny and her rule that everyone will remember the land of Taaru as the land of Maya; her legacy. Edited by @aakashtigergraphy Driver Raju Guide Pravin #tadoba #maya #tigressmaya #maharastratourism #tigers #tigress #tigersfight #wildlife #wildlifephotography #savetigers #tigersofindia #tigersofmaharashtra

MAYA v/s ROMA 7th May 2023, a day to be remembered forever! After 4 not so exciting safaris in Tadoba buffers, thanks to the unseasonal rains, this was my first drive to the core from Kolara gate. In a first few hours, we missed Maya a couple of times, as she wasn’t following her regular trail. Only gypsies that suddenly bumped into her got her glimpses while crossing roads near Magar tank. I kept saying what bad luck I have in this trip that Maya who has always made my trips to Tadoba memorable, is also not showing up this time. But Nikhil assured “In jungles it only takes a moment for the luck to flip” & that’s exactly what happened with this ONCE IN A LIFETIME SIGHTING! We were anticipating seeing only Roma here, as she was seen in a water body on Cheetal road & had climbed upwards thereafter towards Jamunbodi. I was excited since I had only a brief sighting of Roma in one of my previous trips. It was also exciting as she was being sighted after more than a month. But A LOT MORE was in store for us than just a regular sighting! MAYA, the undisputed Queen & my favourite Tigress, made sure it turns out to be my best experience in the jungles so far! Edited by @aakashtigergraphy Driver Raju Guide Pravin #tadoba #maya #tigressmaya #maharastratourism #tigers #tigeress #tigersfight #wildlife #wildlifephotography #savetigers #tigersofindia #tigersofmaharashtra

All that new growth on some of the slow growers! These are the indoor ones under grow lights from @fluortronix Outdoor Hoyas and jungle catii have exploded with growth everywhere! Love summers for this alone! Will miss these baby leaves transformation during my travel in the next few days… 🥹 White ghost from @nurserybuy.official Variegated Carnosa Compacta from @plantsparadiseindia Krohniana Silver from FB seller Pot of gold from @brikshaofficial Larisa from @brikshaofficial Crimson Queen from @sparrowdesign18 Wilbur graves from Flipkart Hanhiae Pink from FB Hanhiae Yellow from FB Obovata from @brikshaofficial Variegated Kentiana from @sparrowdesign18 #hoyalover #hoya #cactii #sadaaplantholic

Just like that! PC @saleem_bandhavgarh

Dotty, not just a tigress but an emotion. 💚 My first sighting of her was on my birthday last year, during a private trip with @gliding.frog and ever since then, I’ve been blessed enough to see her on every single trip to Bandhavgarh. Thanks to @sachin_rai_photography , who always accommodates my stubborn wish to head to her area, far away, with the slimmest chances of a sighting, especially when there are 7 plus tigers visible within 10 minutes of entry in Tala. Honestly, I never even expected to see her cubs. They are shy, elusive and their sightings are incredibly infrequent. This time, we realised the family would use the road early in the morning, but the moment they sensed the foot rangers approaching, they would quietly slip deep into the forest and settle for the day, way before safari vehicles could ever reach there. Against all odds, that very morning, we had already seen Dotty with her cubs on the road. Brief, yet more than enough to be grateful for because even that felt unbelievably lucky. In the afternoon, we headed straight back to her area. Even before we reached the spot where we expected to see her, Saleem noticed her sitting quietly beside the track, almost hidden in the grass. She looked divine surrounded by all that green. Honestly, that alone would have been enough for me. But then came the surprise no one expected. One by one, her cubs slowly walked towards her. We maintained silence and distance throughout, probably why they felt comfortable enough to show themselves. Dotty, however, looked completely done with motherhood in that moment. She just wanted to rest while her tiny troublemakers had other plans. And there we were, absolutely over the moon, watching those special little moments unfold in front of us. Every sighting of Dotty leaves me emotional. It never feels ordinary. It feels like a gift. And I’ll forever be grateful to her and her cubs for blessing us with one of a kind experience this time! 🧿 Shot on @nikonindiaofficial #sadaawildlifephotography #sadaawildstories #tigersofindia #savetigers #dotty

4 days after I shot this… he was killed. 💔 What a tragic end for one of the boldest and most striking males of Bandhavgarh. Pujari had slowly taken over parts of his brother Chota Bheem’s territory after Chota Bheem was taken away from the park. Eventually, he became deeply tied to Tara’s story, Chota Bheem’s former mate. He followed her through Khitauli and the buffer forests of Panpatha, slowly occupying spaces that once belonged to Chota Bheem. Many times, the two were seen together around the same waterholes. But Tara’s story has always been difficult. Since Chota Bheem disappeared, Tara had been caught between D1 ( who had overlapping territory with Chota Bheem ) and Pujari and she has had terrible luck raising her cubs. She reportedly lost litter after litter, apparently thrice, because of the overlapping territories and conflict between these dominant males. Pujari himself reportedly killed the cubs she had with Chota Bheem in order to mate with her. And while he spent time with Tara, his own cubs with Kativa were allegedly killed by another male elsewhere. This video was shot on the evening of the 6th, when I headed straight to the buffer from the airport. The very next morning, on the 7th, we saw Pujari in the core area while D1, now the dominant male of Khitauli, was mating with Tara. Pujari watched them from a distance before quietly walking back toward the buffer. The following two days, Tara was again seen mating with Pujari in the buffer. And then, a day later, he likely followed her back toward the core… not knowing it would be his last walk. On the morning safari of the 11th, we entered Khitauli hoping to see him once again. But all we heard was that there had been two loud growls early that morning. No sign of Pujari. No Tara. No D1. Soon after, the area was suddenly closed mid-safari. Forest officials gathered near the camp where the growls had reportedly been heard. We waited silently on the road, sensing something was terribly wrong. >>> Continued in pinned comment…. #pujari #tigersofbandhavgarh #savetigers #sadaawildlifephotography

That stare… 🫣😳 and the reason behind it…👇 It was a rainy morning in Bandhavgarh… One of the gypsies besides us had an umbrella up and that was enough to spark curiosity. Bajrang, the ever-unbothered ruler of Tala, couldn’t ignore it. He walked, his gaze hooked onto the alien object, quietly decoding this strange presence… while I just stood there, trying hard that my hands don’t shake. Because at the end of the day, a tiger is still a cat. His curiosity got me my shot. 😅 Shot on @nikonindiaofficial #sadaawildlifephotography #sadaawildstories #savetigers #tigersofindia #tigersofbandhavgarh

I can’t express my love for her in words… P151, the matriarch of Panna Tiger Reserve 🙏💚 My Panna trips are planned around her. Every single time! And it’s been a long cherished dream to see her like this, not across the banks of the Ken river where I’d always seen her, but close… really close. And somehow, this time, it felt like she knew. In the middle of chaos, countless gypsies, noise, anticipation, SHE CHOSE A SPOT that felt like it was just for us. Just a quiet moment carved out of the wild. I still get goosebumps thinking about how it all unfolded. I also remember how I had cried on my last summer trip after missing her, the kind of tears only a few tigers can bring out of you. And right now, she sits right at the very top of that list. Some sightings you witness. Some… you feel! 🥹 Shot on @nikonindiaofficial Z9 ( DX mode ) w/ 400mm f/4.5 #sadaawildlifephotography #sadaawildstories #tigersofpanna #P151 #savetigers

Simple tongue flick? It’s not what you see.. It’s actually one of the most advanced sensory systems in the wild. With every flick, the cobra is collecting microscopic chemical particles from the air and the ground. The forked tongue samples from two directions at once… left and right… giving it a sense of where the scent is coming from. Then the tongue retracts, delivering those particles to the Jacobson’s organ, a specialized sensory organ in the roof of its mouth. Like… what’s around, who passed by and where to go next. Prey. Predator. Mate. Distance. Direction. This isn’t just smelling. This is analysis. Navigation. Survival. Basically… a living, breathing chemical GPS. A whole world decoded… in a flick. For a snake, this is vision beyond sight. Not seen. Not heard. But known. Shot on @nikonindiaofficial #sadaawildlifephotography #sadaawildstories #kingcobra #tongueflick

My life in a gist… Living on my own terms! 💚 A mix of wild moments, quiet lessons and everything I believe in. 🍃 Not perfect, just real! ☺️ #sadaawildlifephotography #sadaawildstories #wildlifelove #vegantraveller #bigcats

Loved this colour & outfit! 🍋 @label_natalia_livingston Stylist @harinireddym VC @foreverstudiosofficial #sadaa