This issue of TreeTake is lachrymose, brought out in a sombre atmosphere, for it has lost its strongest pillar, or rather its Rock of Gibraltar, its co-founder, managing editor, and veteran journalist Archana Misra, who passed away on April 4.
No words, no memorial tribute would suffice to describe the extraordinary grit, determination, and never-say-die spirit of the lady who, along with her daughter Saumya (Editor), laid the foundation of TreeTake on January 15, 2016, the first-of-its-kind magazine on environment published from Lucknow, UP. Though a woman, she worked harder and perhaps better than a man, managing everything from permissions, approvals, and necessary paperwork to funds for the venture. She was driven not by the desire for mere monetary gains but by her love for nature, wildlife, flora, and fauna. Known for feeding strays and birds in her locality, on numerous occasions, she stood up to save trees from being cut, undeterred in the face of the strongest opposition. Archanaji opened her eyes in a literary and academic household—she was born to a father who was himself a prolific writer and veteran Hindi journalist. Small wonder that with a postgraduate degree in Sanskrit (Ved group) and a diploma in Russian under her belt, she chose to follow in her father’s footsteps.
In a career spanning over 50 years, she worked with several top publications, starting her career in Hindi journalism with the daily Navjivan, sister publication of National Herald, and worked there till its closure. Later, she worked in a couple of other lead Hindi dailies and then took to freelancing before helping to fulfill her daughter’s dream project, a magazine on environment—a subject of vital importance in today’s world but without many genuine and well-moulded mouthpieces to spread awareness about it or raise burning issues. Archanaji ran concerted campaigns through TreeTake on issues that affected the masses, units spewing smoke in localities and polluting the air, illegal factories running in the midst of densely populated areas, and other such things, and was almost always successful in getting her voice, as well as that of TreeTake, heard! Her excellent legal knowledge aided her efforts. Her well-researched and hard-hitting articles on burning environmental issues were an eye-opener to many, prompting suitable action at the administrative level on several occasions. Yet she never sought accolades, awards, or even recognition. She believed in working quietly and diligently.
A soft-spoken person with an extremely pleasant personality that hid a strong cast-iron temperament, she was kind-hearted and ever ready to help others. Once, during winter, when an old man with Parkinson’s came begging and stood shivering in the cold, she took off the new shawl around her shoulders and wrapped it around the old man. She was also an astute astro but believed in ‘karma’, refusing to ‘look into the future.’ In fact, she had deep knowledge of every subject and no one could beat her in a verbal debate. And then, fate dealt a cruel blow. This one-woman army, the untiring driving force behind the noble venture of environmental conservation, suffered a stroke in 2019 and became paralysed on the left side. This was a severe jolt for someone who was swift, agile, and always on the go. But the gutsy woman she was, she swallowed her trauma in one gulp. Even this critical illness was no bar to her passion for the magazine and its mission. She used her mental faculties to the hilt, taking active interest in each and every article and issue of TreeTake, offering invaluable guidance and insight.
TreeTake not only pays tribute—it salutes this remarkable woman of achievements, who was a trailblazer in her own right. Team TreeTake pledges to cherish and carry her legacy forward, hoping to make her proud in the heavens above. -Team TreeTake
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