The Golden Mahseer, Mighty Tiger Of The Blue Water's

The River Rat "Tatwa Pradhan"

My encounter with the River Rat (Tatva Pradhan).

Who was Courteous to me & took the time out to not just teach me but also educated me about the Fishing Techniques.

Let's hear it from the professional now, it's narrated beautifully by him:

Apart from the serene mountains, the gurgling streams,.. The enchanting forests with its enriched flora and

fauna..that adorn the beautiful hill station of north Bengal and Sikkim..

I particularly feel blessed to be born in this place as an angler. With the eternal mountain fed perennial river flowing through our valley. 

Lies a rich stock of river ecology with some of the most beautiful game fish that's on offer. The "golden mahseer" which some relate to as the "tough head" an some as the"mighty tiger of the blue waters" are one of the greatest game fish known for its aggressive and elusive nature and tough fights. 

Other common species found in these rivers are Katla, gardi, asala( common trout) all very yummy and further north in the cold waters swarm the brown n the gorgeous rainbow trout known for its taste. The golden mahseer is the most prized catch and the most sought after by serious anglers. 

We normally use three techniques for fresh water angling, he say's

First being the bait casting ( live bait and edible baits) bugger chomp on some of the weirdest baits I've come to know, like earthworm, cockroaches, grapes, jellies, bajra balls, neutralla, roti. The list goes on with your imagination.. 

The good thing is with this method of angling. U cast the bait an use your time relaxing in the river side busting your stress with some wine and reads. 

The second form of hooking them is by using artificial bait, we call it spinning. Plug baits (wooden and plastic replicas of minnows ) that imitate the action and movement of wounded fish minnows are used. This technique requires a bit more practice and knowledge of the river pattern. But all the more gets intense. Some of the the big catches are through this method..recorded Sizes go upto 23kgs ( golden mahseer) as witnessed wit my own eyes... Have been lucky to witness some epic fights,..

Though some even bigger ones won the battle and got away... The best part.... Through the years anglers have developed a sense of deep respect for this dwindling fish as their numbers are coming down due to the construction of dams and toxic waste being dumped into the rivers(conveniently, by these industries and pharmaceuticals. To sum it up the golden mahseer is one of the most prestigious catches amongst us anglers and we play our part by enjoying the fight with the fish and releasing it back to the river to fight yet another day!

The third form of angling we have is " fly fishing", it's the most sophisticated form. 

This is normally best for river up north for trout. Here what we do is make imitation of flies that are common in the region of fishing and use them as bait. The gear used is totally different and it takes some practice to master this style of angling. All the more it's the most graceful form of fishing. Having said that People normally have the misconception bout fishing, some say it's against religion, it's a sin.

 But what I feel is that it's one good sport if done ethically,.. As it is, we humans were hunters once so our forefathers have survived on it.. So no guilt involved!! Our aim as anglers is not just to catch a fish and eat it ( i would rather buy it in the market ) what we aim to do is promote the sport of game fishing, Study, record, catches and species.

We create awareness on keeping the river ecology clean n healthy. Discourage poisoning and dynamite usage. There's a whole new avenue for adventure loving youngsters to make a good career out of this, I feel.. Only if we can work towards preserving the mighty mahseer .. Anglers from around the world are willing to shell out good dough to get a good game,.. These fishes are the migrating ones,.. 

Swim up stream before the monsoon from the plains to the hilly water to breed. Then go down stream post monsoons, Back to the plains (winter vacation:). They travel hundreds of miles of river, which makes them strong which attributes to their tough fights. An that's where the damned dams come to play. Obstructing the poor fellows to meet their friendly foe anglers. The dams are supposed to make fish ladders but the sad part is it's only for namesake..so still a ray of hope there!!! ..