Neega Ngurang began fishing as a child, “local style” with a “bamboo pole rod, using a single monoline and one hook,” recalls the sports angler, river guide, and content creator from Sagalee, near Itanagar in Arunachal Pradesh.In 2013, he discovered angling and was hooked — pun intended. “I did not know what sport fishing is, but when I saw a spinning rod on television, I realised that I also wanted to buy it and learn how to use it,” says Neega, who spent the next two years practising angling in the rivers in and around where he lived. “As I gained experience, I also picked up the catch-and-release technique used in sport fishing, and began attending competitions, starting from 2016 or 17,” he says.Today, he runs training programmes on angling and also a popular fishing YouTube channel, Neega Fishing Adventures, through which he educates people about the sport, which he insists is addictive. “You have to experience it to understand. It is really fun.”Angling in the hillsNeega was recently in Mechuka to attend the second edition of the Mechuka Trout Quest, the annual angling championship, held between July 25 and 26, which saw 56 elite competitors from within and outside the country, including Bobby Satpal, widely recognised as one of India’s top fly anglers, and Tup Meesupwatana, a popular professional angler and YouTuber from Thailand.