The Elephant Whisperers’ Caretaker Couple React to Oscars 2023 Win: ‘Beyond The Prize, The Pride as a Father’
The Elephant Whisperers’ Caretaker Couple React to Oscar Win: The Elephant Whisperers has become one of the biggest inspirations for Indian documentary filmmakers after its grand win at Oscars 2023. The Kartiki Gonsalves directorial won the Best Documentary Short Film trophy at the 95th Academy Awards. The documentary produced by Guneet Monga brought India its first Oscar. Apart from RRR, The Elephant Whisperers is being hailed by the global audiences who have watched it on Netflix. Now, the caretaker couple Bomman and Bellie who feature in the short documentary reacted to the global achievement and lauded Kartiki for her work. They also spoke about their relationship with the elephants, whom they treat like their children.
BOMMAN FROM THE ELEPHANT WHISPERERS CALLS HIMSELF PROTECTOR OF THE FOREST
Bomman and Bellie along with Guneet and Kartiki were present at the press conference in Mumbai post the Oscar win. Bomman, while interacting with the media said, “I am a Kattuanayakan. I am a protector of the forest. I feel immense pride that the stories of my babies have been put in front of the world. I want to thank Kartiki madam for actually bringing my story and the story of my children to the entire world. That is so important to me, beyond the prize, the pride I feel as a father.” His wife Bellie, stated that “Bomman might feel a little shy. But I have no fear because I’ve lived in the forest. You people might think Oscar is big prize but for me, the real prize is coming and meeting all you wonderful people who have given me so much respect as a mother. I want to thank everybody here. It’s wonderful to be able to come to a big city and meet people.”
BELLIE AND BOMMAN ARE TAKING CARE OF A NEW CALF NAMED ‘DHARMAM’
Speaking about the new calf, the couple have been taking care of, Bellie revealed that “It is sometimes painful when I bring up elephants and they have be left back in the wild. As a mother you bring up children and then they go away. As a mother, I was apprehensive about bringing up another child. But when they brought Dharmam to me and they told me his mother has passed away. How could I say no to bring up the baby elephant?”
The Elephant Whisperers showcased Belli and her husband Bomman raising two elephant calves, ‘Raghu’ and ‘Ammu.’
