It made an unplanned humble beginning in 1986 with a small tented camp at Panna - Ken River Lodge, the camp was started by Shyamendra Singh popularly known as Vini. As wildlife tourism in India had not matured the camp saw it lows and highs. In 2001 it was slowly converted into a more permanent lodge with huts and cottages. In 2001 Manav Khanduja joined Shyamendra and in 2005 they set up Kings Lodge, Bandhavgarh followed by Tree House Hideaway, Bandhavgarh in 2006 and Kanha Earth Lodge in 2009. The idea of putting all lodges under one umbrella was conceived and Pugdundee Safaris was born in 2009. Today Pugdundee Safaris is run by Vini and Manav with a team of over 150 people committed in providing an incredible wildlife experience and has catered to over 10000 guests. The team includes Naturalists, nature guides, boat men, trackers and a marketing team based in Delhi.