Kartiki Gonsalves (born 2 November 1986) is an Indian director and producer. In 2023, she won the Best Documentary Short Subject at the 95th Academy Awards for The Elephant Whisperers. She is also one of the first women chosen as a Sony Alpha Artisan of Imagery in India and also associated with brands like Peak Design, Swarovski Optik Nature Explorer 2021.
Kartiki is the younger daughter of Timothy A. Gonsalves and Priscilla Tapley Gonsalves, who is from Binghamton, New York. She has one older sister, Danica Gonsalves.[1] She grew up in Ooty, within the Nilgiri Biosphere reserve in the Nilgiris district of Tamil Nadu.[2][3]
She studied at the Dr G R Damodaran College of Science in Coimbatore and graduated in 2007, before continuing her studies, focusing on photography[2] at Light & Life Academy, Ooty.[4]
Gonsalves is a documentary filmmaker and photographer[5] and has worked as a camera operator for Animal Planet and the Discovery Channel.[6] She is the director, co-executive producer and cinematographer of the documentary film The Elephant Whisperers[5] produced by Sikhya Entertainment and acquired and distributed by Netflix.[7] The 39.5-minute[8] documentary was produced at the Mudumalai tiger reserve which is part of the Nilgiri biosphere reserve in Tamil Nadu, 30-minutes from where Gonsalves grew up.[3]
On 13 March 2023, the film won the Academy Award for Best Documentary Short Film at the 95th Academy Awards.[9] It was the first Indian film to win the award.[10]
Kartiki Gonsalves is a Sony Artisan of Imagery India since 2020, specialising in nature and social documentaries.[11] She gives workshops on nature and wildlife photography[12] and has conducted tours of Bangalore and Mysore cities.[13]
Gonsalves is an International League of Conservation Photographers Associate Fellow.[14]
| Award | Year | Nominated work | Category | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| DOC NYC | 2022 | The Elephant Whisperers | Shorts: Change Makers | Shortlisted | [15] |
| 95th Academy Awards | 2023 | The Elephant Whisperers | Best Documentary Short Subject | Won | [9] |
| Grierson Awards | 2023 | The Elephant Whisperers | Best Natural History or Environmental Documentary | Shortlisted | [16] |
On 28 June 2023 King Charles III and Queen Camilla presented Kartiki with the Elephant Family award called the Tara Award, to recognise her contributions to protecting Asian wildlife.[17]
