The Art of Letting Wild: Rewilding, Restoration and Our Place in Nature

What does it mean to restore a landscape, and how do we know when we are helping nature recover? At a time when ecological loss is reshaping habitats and threatening biodiversity, restoration offers a way to rethink our relationship with the living world, moving beyond isolated interventions towards a deeper understanding of how ecosystems function and renew themselves. This MOG Sundays begins with a screening of The Becoming of a Wildscape, a film exploring Elephants by the Lake. Spread across approximately 80 acres of undulating land in the Eastern Ghats, the project offers a compelling account of ecological restoration in practice. Through conversations with Zerodha founder Nithin Kamath, CTO Kailash Nadh and programme manager Varun Balakrishnan, the film follows the thinking behind the initiative, examining how curiosity, experimentation and a willingness to learn can shape restoration efforts that respect biodiversity, local communities and the character of a landscape. Following the screening, conservation biologist Siddharth Rao, along with the filmmaker Tanmayi Gidh, will lead a conversation on the ideas and practices of ecological restoration and rewilding. As Founding Chair of the Zerodha Rewilding Fund and head of Conservation and Restoration at the Rainmatter Foundation, Siddharth brings 25 years of experience in Indian conservation, spanning wildlife filmmaking, field ecology, rainforest research and community-led grassland restoration. He is also a founding member of the Ecological Restoration Alliance India and co-founder of the Adavi Trust and Ila. The session will unpack what restoration looks like across different landscapes, why ecological recovery requires approaches sensitive to local conditions, and how biodiversity, communities and climate shape the choices we make. It will also explore the role individuals and businesses can play in supporting meaningful, long-term restoration, offering practical ways to participate and resources for those wishing to take the conversation further. More than a discussion about conservation, this is an invitation to reconsider our place within nature. Rewilding asks us to recognise that we are part of the systems we seek to restore, and that meaningful change begins with curiosity, careful observation and a willingness to learn from the land itself. Join us for a film and conversation that brings ecological restoration out of the specialist domain and into the realm of shared responsibility, asking how we might help landscapes recover while learning to live more thoughtfully within them. The Becoming of a Wildscape – 18.09 Minutes | India | Directed by Tanmayi Gidh Created by Untold Earth and Teepoi Films Free Entry | RSVP compulsory Please WhatsApp your name to +91 7722089666 to register.