A documentary about baby elephants in Mudumalai has been shortlisted for an Oscar. Nilgiris Lok Sabha Member A. Raza gave Rs.
The documentary The Elephant Whispers, shot at the Mudumalai Tiger Reserve in the Nilgiris district, has been shortlisted for an Oscar. The Bagan couple who brought up baby elephants named Bommi and Raghu, who were featured in the documentary, are happy with this. Nilgiris Lok Sabha Member A.Rasa encouraged this Pagan couple who helped raise the cubs who were separated from their mother by giving Rs.25 thousand from his own funds to Mudumalai.
28 elephants are being cared for in Mudumalai Tiger Reserve. During the British rule, domesticated elephants were used to cut down the trees in the forest. Now they are used as kumki elephants to chase away or capture wild elephants that enter the town.
A baby elephant named Raghu who was separated from her mother in Dhenkanikottai area of Krishnagiri district and was only 3 months old and a 5 month old baby elephant called Ammukutty who was separated from her mother in Sathyamangalam forest were brought to Mudumalai breeding camp. The forest department has entrusted the responsibility of maintaining it to husband and wife Bagans named Bomman and Belli. Pomman, who raised these two elephants, has directed a documentary film called The Elephant Whispers by Mumbai-based female director Karthiki Konçalves, focusing on the female couple. The documentary is now an Oscar finalist. The Bagan couple who raised baby elephants are happy with this.
Bagan Bomman said: I came to work at Bagan to help my father at the age of 10. I know well the qualities of elephants and their activities. At the age of 18, I worked as a cowherd to a Kumki elephant named Anna. Now I am 54 years old. Over 40 years of experience in elephant care. I have always had a special fondness for baby elephants. We will keep the cubs separated from the mother in separate cages. A medical team is also present at Mudumalai for this purpose. “I am happy that the documentary about the elephants I raised has been shortlisted for the Oscars,” he said.