It was on a last visit to try to catch the wildebeest crossing the Mara River that the scene came to him.

He had waited for hours at the viewpoint by the river, and for several days before, had gone back to the hotel disappointed.

“You are waiting for them to cross the river, they don’t cross. But one moment, one of them just dives into the river, and then everybody follows,” Dilip recalled his experience in one of Kenya’s best parks as he witnessed one of the Eight Wonders of the World.

He described what followed in an article titled The Last Kiss that was later published in The Asian Weekly and on his LinkedIn page.

Watching and photographing wildlife are some of the hobbies he has picked up in his life in various parts of the world, and living and working in Kenya makes both possible for him.

Still, he has a caveat: “I enjoy photographing wildlife. I cannot claim that I’m a wildlife photographer. For me, focus is on what does that picture tell you? A story. This is something I picked up from my knack for numbers.”

If you see the Chief Finance Officer at Safaricom performing at an event, whistling, don’t be surprised.  Dilip is also a whistling performing artiste who has taken to the stage here in Nairobi at the urging of his wife, herself a chartered accountant turned all-round creative.

Someone once saw him ahead of a performance and was so stunned at his presence at the auditorium that they googled him and showed his credentials to someone else in the audience, who turned out to be his much amused wife.

The numbers man loves travel and together with his spouse has visited over 50 countries. To capture moments, he started photography and discovered he had a knack for it.

With five years of staying in Kenya under his belt, Dilip’s favourite food is one that will definitely surprise you.

Watch this podcast to learn about Dilip’s 10,000 cassette collection, his love and devotion to his wife and daughter plus how  being born in Calcutta made him destined to be creative, cultural and well-read.