Bollywood and Wildlife

I grew up watching Bollywood inclusive of movies of my parents' era. Pet animals were a common feature in these movies. Hema Malini urges Dhanno (a female horse used for Tanga) to trot faster in Sholay movie (1975), Kabootar (Pigeon) is a postman for the very famous song in Maine Pyaar Kiya (1989), the loyal friend Moti ( in Teri Meherbaniyan (1985) have played a role in movies and brought earned money for their owners.

Pet animals have been and are currently used with certain guidelines. The wild animals who had "trainers" at one point in Indian history. I was young at that time and I do remember watching these movies. Now when I look back (after years of working on wildlife), I try to figure out what was my perception about these animals before and after watching the movie. While Elephants (eternalized by Hathi mere Sathi, 1971) had always been shown as sensitive characters it’s the carnivore against whom Bollywood had a problem.? Amitabh Bacchan had been my favorite and while Mr. Bacchan had sentiments for Dolphin whom he introduced as his mother (Movie Ajooba, 1990), he seems to be not very happy with Tigers ( Natwarlal 1979 and Khoon Paseena 1977). Fighting a tiger was still a testament to the power of men. Actor Dharmendra also skipped talking about his pet dialogue regarding dogs and went ahead for scenes with a tiger in the movie Ankhein 1968. In Kartavya 1979 since Dharmendra was a forest officer, he introduced how poaching was done and how poachers would poison cattle to kill tigers whose skin could be sold for "10 thousand INR!".

Although one thing was common at that time. Bollywood always showcased wild animals as dangerous and guess that was the reason why people went to see these animals, especially tigers, in Circus too. Surprisingly these 1970s mentioned movies were from the same decade in which Late Prime Minister Indira? Gandhi launched Project Tiger because tiger numbers were dwindling drastically. However, awareness regarding carnivores was still limited in Bollywood and hence sher-cheeta-bagh was mentioned randomly while portraying some other animal. The 70s was the time when cheeta was already declared extinct in India, yet many movies showed a leopard as a Cheeta (The fight scene in Kartavya movie, between Dharmendra and the leopard is till the date mentioned as between him and the cheeta!). The movies at that time portrayed Big Cats as ferocious animals and any man who can fight them meant they were very strong. However, this negative connotation in Bollywood changed when wildlife started getting mainstreamed in national policies. A lot of credit goes to the Wildlife (Protection) Act of 1972 which brought legal rights to forests and its inhabitants. The tiger was portrayed as a flagship species to draw the attention of the public and divert from the notoriety attached to its persona. Perhaps, Project Tiger's success also accounts for the fact that a very famous movie mentions tigers in less number. Zanjeer movie was released in the same year as Project Tiger launch portraying in some way that it was a national concern. Veteran actor Pran mentions in a dialogue of the movie "sher kabhi doosrey sher ka shikar nahi karta......waisey bhi ab hamarey mulk mein sher bahut kam reh gaye hain" (meaning a tiger never hunts another tiger......especially when in our country tiger is so less in number). Although in Hindi "sher" means lion and "bagh" means tiger if one survey the Bollywood movies, all the mention was always for sher and cheetah and never for bagh and guldar.

However, while the rules were being laid down for bringing wild animals right on paper and guidelines were being developed, keeping some animals and not all animals in the ambit was a slow process. While tigers and lions were prohibited in movies, elephant interaction was not curtailed. The Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act of 1960 mentions protection for bears, monkeys, tigers, panthers, lions, and bulls. By this time Circusus were not banned in India where wild animals were used to perform tricks, inclusive of elephants. The Performing Animals (Registration) Amendment Rules, 2018, brought the focus on all animals used in circuses, including big cats, horses, hippos, elephants, and dogs. This was a big win for animals who were not ethically treated during the performance and in upkeep.

Although now the rules are stricter and noone can keep any wild animal (list of wildlife defined by Ministry of Environment and Forests and Climate change) in their possession, still awareness seems to be limited about many wildlife. People do rescue animals on the street but even a small animal like five-palmed or three-palmed squirrel shouldn't be kept in the house. Tortoises and snakes shouldn't be your pet. Probably the animals that are "considered " wildlife are not yet popularized and more awareness should be focussed on.

A movie trivia: What was the bird used in Coolie movie of 1983 named Allah Rakha? A snapshot is here of the movie Courtsey Ultra. Do comment if it's an eagle or not! also, let me know if it is allowed to keep this animal captive or if one can be punished.

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