It made an unplanned humble beginning in 1986 with a small tented camp at Panna – Ken River Lodge without ever knowing that one day it will become the leading wildlife lodge company in India, 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 the 1990s a mobile camp called Pugdundee Jungle Safaris was also started by Vini and KK Singh ji (Bhavar Sahab of Churat) to take guests into areas where permanent accommodation didn’t exist ,  they were the pioneers of such a concept in India.  Unfortunately this camp with the demise of the Bob Hewitt, who was the main promoter in Europe went into a slumber.  In 2001 Manav Khanduja joined Shyamendra and they started taking this hobby more seriously and together they put Ken River Lodge in a prominent position.  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 back.

Pugdundee is a hindi word meaning a foot trail commonly used by humans and animals, this word is popularly used for such beaten paths in the Indian jungles.

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.

The Pugdundee team is known for its team of experienced & trained naturalists which is looked after by Karan Rana since 2005. Shukra who also joined the team in 2005 with Karan after 21 years at Tiger Tops, Chitwan has provided the extra edge in wilderness specialization.  Seeing the need of the hour, a small dedicated conservation cell has been set by Pugdundee Safaris which is looked after by Shekhar Kolipaka, the principle objective is to connect the fragmented corridors of Central Indian Jungles and to ensure tourism benefits the forest dwellers.