A Barren Land in Taboda Is Now a Vacation Spot, Thanks to These Wildlife Conservationists

In 2015, duo Avantika Chandra and Hans Dalal started The Spotted Owlet Farm House, a homestay in Maharashtra.

Located in the heart of the wilderness, the farm stay hosts numerous wildlife — including hare, mongoose, snakes, scorpions, lizards, over 60 bird species, tigers and leopards.

To add to this, the property is near the Tadoba-Andhari Tiger Reserve — a deciduous forest ecosystem that harbours hundreds of tigers

While the homestay was started as a base for the work the duo was doing with PROWL — their initiative for tiger conservation started in 2013 — it soon grew into a budding jungle experience.

At the property, guests can choose from the three private cottages — Ranthambore, Tadoba and Bandhavgarh — paying tribute to some of the duo’s favourite national parks.

The cottages are made using locally sourced and recycled materials — stones, gravel, bamboo, and old Mangalore tiles.

The couple has transformed the barren land into one that has more than 700 trees of more than 50 varieties like teak, palash, tendu, mahua, babul, ber, mango and more.

The meals at the farm stay include jhunka bhakar,Sindhi kadhi and dal dhokli.

Water conservation is a highlight of the farm stay. The three rainwater harvesting percolation ponds harvest approximately 10 lakh litres of water per year.

Another unique inclusion at the farm stay is the fish and the ducks in the pond.

“The ducks’ waste helps to naturally seal ponds so that they hold water for longer while the fish help to reduce the presence of mosquitoes significantly,” Hans elaborates.

The duo say that their conservationist background has been the driving force behind several initiatives present on this fantasy piece of land.