Scintillating Spiti

For Tushar Panchal (@bombayiger on Instagram), his passion to travel is non-negotiable. Not surprisingly, the photographer and digital account manager at a design and digital advisory firm hasn’t flinched from quitting jobs every time he had an opportunity to travel. “I am very passionate about travelling to new, remote and untrodden places,” he says, as he shares his shots from the desert mountain valley, Spiti, in Himachal Pradesh.

Buddha on Eid

During my trip to Spiti Valley, we had a night’s stay in a village called Langza. I came out for a walk and saw the crescent moon rising over the Buddha statue. Amazed at this view, I immediately grabbed camera from my friend and took this shot. Later, I trekked up to the statue and realised the world was celebrating Eid that day. This coming together of nature’s beauty and religion is something that astonishes me every time I look at this photo.

Key Monastery

Dust storm on the Spiti River

Key Monastery is one of the most iconic locations in Spiti Valley and you will not be satisfied even if you take a thousand pictures here. When I was taking a photo, a dust storm formed on the Spiti River, which lasted for a few seconds. I kept on shooting as fast as I could. To get this one shot right, I captured around 12 GB of pictures. I think not many people will get to click this kind of an image in several years.

Buddha Star trails

Buddha statue in Langza

This image is all about brilliance and wisdom! It should remind us of the five sayings of Buddha that we need to start taking seriously. They are: Be patient — everything comes to you at the right time. The root of suffering is attachment. Train your mind to see something good every day. If you light a lamp for somebody, it will also brighten up your path. It’s okay to lose people but never lose yourself.

Kungri Monastery

A monk admires the Pin Valley

Kungri is a beautifully-constructed monastery located in Pin Valley and we visited it during the lunch hour. A monk walked out of the entrance after his lunch. This is exactly what one sees when they exit the monastery. It was a million dollar view and a monk was living it. This picture is very close to my heart.

Spiti River

Dark landscape across Spiti River

What do I say about this shot? This was something I never imagined to see in my life. But it was just a perfect moment for any photographer and I could see myself standing there and facing the dark landscape through my camera.

A Village in Pin Valley

The village is inhabited by around 30 families

This was a very small village in the Pin Valley that comprises around 30 families who consume food they grow. There was a huge overcast of clouds over the mountains, which looked really beautiful. It took a lot of patience to get this picture because, in the mountains, the clouds move very slowly as there is barely any wind blowing at that altitude. So, I waited till the light fell on the village to get this frame right.

Milky Way at Dhankar Monastery

A clear view of the milky way

Dhankar is a small village not very far from Kaza, which is the base of Spiti Valley. I visited the monastery here at night. This village is known for the Spitian architecture and is very well-planned on that mountain. It was amazing to see such a clear view of the milky way rising right above the Dhankar Monastery.

Chandratal Lake

Chandratal Lake gets its name due to its crescent shape

I went to Chandratal on a cold and stormy evening and this was what I saw there. Everything in this picture is what people crave for.