Finding the highest highs in the deepest depths, India’s finest Freediver Mario Fernandes hopes to spark greater interest in the country in the sport of diving and marine conservation. By Bindu Gopal Rao

An overpopulated trip to Kedarkantha made Aman Panwar reflect on the dangerous rise of ‘tourist-trekkers’ in the Himalaya, where unprepared throngs are destructing the natural habitat and profits are being made at the cost of environment.

Despite some negative stereotypes, there are the wonderful ways in which nearly 14,400 species of fungi, specific to India, live, breathe and slay. Babli Yadav explores this fantastic, beautiful world with young naturalists from around the country.

From the Himalaya to the coastlines, unchecked tourism is destroying India’s ecological balance. We can’t afford to return to our pre-pandemic state of a tourist-induced environmental catastrophe. By Vipin Labroo

Now aiming to become a boxing world champion, 24-year-old Karthik Sathish spoke about the ins and outs of the sport, its growing popularity in India, his experiences in the ring, and more. By Akhila Damodadran

‘I was overcome with fear and awe, witness to a power I could feel but couldn’t comprehend’. In another account of his adventures in the Garhwal Himalaya, Zachary Conrad recalls a treacherous trek to Sahastra Tal.

‘I missed the recklessness of youth and wanted to prove to myself that I could still test my limits—if only for a weekend.’ Unguided, unprepared, and unfazed, Karan Madhok recalls the horrors and hope from a fateful Himalayan trek to Nag Tibba.

Given how the pandemic’s second wave has devastated India, the BCCI’s decision to postpone the IPL should’ve been made much earlier. Cricket, in the time of crisis and tragedy, had felt plain wrong. By Jamie Alter

‘The avalanche went to ground; in its path all snow had slipped off the mountain, leaving only rocks and ice. For a moment the world was suspended in fear and dread. Chaos followed.’ Zachary Conrad recalls a fateful snowboarding adventure in Gulmarg and the lessons learned at the mercy of snowy, Kashmiri peaks.

Gulmarg’s Raja’s Hut was the subject of the 2018 documentary Iron Khan. Citing the film and personal experience, Zachary Conrad recalls the guest-house and its owners, in the foreground of the Himalayas, snowboarding, and insurgency in Kashmir.

Basketball star Vishesh Bhriguvanshi won the Arjuna Award this month, joining a prestigious list of sporting greats. Here’s the story of the Varanasi-born baller, and what he represents for the less-celebrated sports in India. - by Karan Madhok.

There is a clear disconnect between Indian sports and films about Indian sports. We love inspiring cinematic stories about sports in India—often ignoring the sports themselves. Jamie Alter analyses this dichotomy.

There are few things that India loves more than cricket and cinema. And yet, the cultural connection between our favourite pastimes have rarely resulted in quality cricket films. Jamie Alter lists some of the best and worst of Bollywood on the willow.

From Bandarpunch and Nanda Devi to the Annapurna and more, Zachary Conrad recommends five must-read books for a better understanding of the mountains we seek to scale—beyond us, and within us.

Photo Essay: Deep in the mountains, the seeds of mutual loneliness evolved into an unlikely camaraderie. Aman Panwar writes about his friend Shyama—a cattle-herder and shepherd—in the Har Ki Dun valley.

From the school basketball courts to international cricket tournaments, how India’s diversity and divisions can be united under the umbrella of sports - by Adit Joshi in Student’s Corner.

‘The yeti is the mountain. He’s the mountain’s teeth and the mountain’s claws, a manifestation of the power of nature, and a reminder to act with respect.’ Zachary Conrad recalls an awe-inspiring hike to the Himalayan summit of Bandarpunch

‘That night I knew that there was magic left in this world’ – On a trek to Kedar Tal, Zachary Conrad faced danger, awe, and unmatched beauty.

‘It was late October, too late for shepherds, and we had the mountains to ourselves.’ Read Zachary Conrad’s vivid narrative of another perilous and rewarding hike in the Himalaya.

True Stories of excellence – Jamie Alter reviews She Dared: Women in Indian Sports by Abhishek Dubey and Sanjeeb Mukherjea

“I feel a lot of things in the mountains, but gratitude is what I feel the most.” In his first ‘Pardesi Pahadi’ column, Zachary Conrad writes about an unforgettable hike for a glimpse of the majestic Nanda Devi

Stephen Alter’s Wild Himalaya: A Natural History of the Greatest Mountain Range on Earth was published in August. Here’s an excerpt, where Alter delves deep into the world of an unlikely predator: the carnivorous sundew.