Butterflies in his heart

Roshan Upadhyaya is a police commando and Shotokan karate instructor, but off-duty he captures butterflies using his DSLR camera and documenting them.
(Clockwise from top) Roshan with the medalists trained by him in Nepal; with the photo of a butterfly species he discovered, with his students | Express
(Clockwise from top) Roshan with the medalists trained by him in Nepal; with the photo of a butterfly species he discovered, with his students | Express

ARUNACHAL PRADESH: Call him Karate Kid or Butterfly Man. This Arunachal Pradesh police commando is grabbing the loving attention of schoolchildren as well as the state government.

Roshan Upadhyaya, 28, is a wildlife conservationist and Shotokan karate instructor who has etched his name in the India Book of Records and the Asia Book of Records. He is also an honorary doctorate and an author in the making.

Taking his time off his hectic police duties, he moves around places to capture butterflies using his DSLR camera and document them. The nimble karate expert has discovered four to five butterfly species so far.

And not just that, he also runs a karate academy, along with his wife Himadri Acharyya, where over 100 children are enrolled.

Taking note of his expertise, the authorities roped in him to impart training in self-defence to girl students of schools across the country’s eastern-most Changlang district.

Born in the Miao subdivision of the district in Arunachal, Roshan cracked a competitive exam in 2012 to get into the police service when he was a college student. He continued his studies and completed graduation in due course.

“I have always loved photography. My interest in butterflies grew in 2017. It was a new subject for me and I started conducting searches online. When I learnt more about it, my interest grew further. Soon, I started documenting the insect,” Roshan says.

Inspired by senior police officers, he has written a book on butterflies. His Butterflies of Police Training Centre, Banderdewa is a coffee table book that will soon be sent for print.

“Top police officers, especially previous DGP sir (RP Upadhyaya), have encouraged me. DGP sir had inspired me to write the book. It is almost finished. Only printing is left. The book has been forwarded by two scientists from Assam and the Principal Chief Conservator of Forest, among others. I drafted and designed it,” Roshan says.

He is a martial artist without a degree. He started the academy at Miao town to hone children’s talent. Affiliated to the Indian Olympic Association, it imparts training in self-defence. His wife, who is a black belt in karate and kickboxing, is the chief instructor.

“I realised the children were immensely talented but they did not have a platform. So, we set up the academy in February this year with help from the district administration,” Roshan says.

“I had learnt the basics of karate during my police training. I did a commando course, too, in jungle warfare. However, I learnt the most from my wife,” he says.

The cop secured a certificate in self-defence from the American Sports and Fitness Association. During the pandemic year, he underwent a six-month course online. He shared his videos of training in self-defence vis-à-vis martial art with the association and after watching them, it conferred him with the certificate.

Roshan is also a trainer of ‘parkour’, a form of martial art. There was an international event in Nepal last year where he was the coach of the Indian team. Four children from his academy participated in it. Two bagged gold and two others won silver.

The district authorities entrusted Roshan and his wife recently with the task of imparting training in self-defence to the girl students of the schools across the district.

Changlang Superintendent of Police, Mihin Gambo appreciated Roshan for his contributions in the field of wildlife. “He is doing the activities in his leisure time. He does his police duties and when he gets time, he documents the butterflies. We appreciate him for his contributions in the field of wildlife,” the SP said.

Arunachal’s biodiversity is home to countless species of the insect. Roshan and fellow conservationist Minom Pertin have raised a lot of awareness on wildlife, especially butterflies, in Miao around the Namdapha National Park and Tiger Reserve in the past few years.

Related Stories

No stories found.
The New Indian Express
www.newindianexpress.com