PM Modi Meets Bomman, Belli Of Oscar Award-Winning Documentary 'The Elephant Whisperers'

PM Narendra Modi met the Bomman-Belli couple and the 'majestic elephants' at the Mudumalai Tiger Reserve.

New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday visited the Theppakadu elephant camp in Tamil Nadu's Mudumalai Tiger Reserve (MTR) and met the Bomman-Belli couple, the main stars of Oscar Award-winning documentary "The Elephant Whisperers". Taking to his official Twitter account, Modi also shared pictures with the "majestic elephants" at the Mudumalai Tiger Reserve.

"What a delight to meet the wonderful Bomman and Belli, along with Bommi and Raghu," PM Narendra Modi said in a tweet and shared some pictures.

What a delight to meet the wonderful Bomman and Belli, along with Bommi and Raghu. pic.twitter.com/Jt75AslRfF

— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) April 9, 2023

With the majestic elephants at the Mudumalai Tiger Reserve. pic.twitter.com/ctIoyuQYvd

— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) April 9, 2023

In a video shared by the news agency ANI, Prime Minister Modi can also be seen feeding elephants. 

#WATCH | Prime Minister Narendra Modi feeds an elephant at Theppakadu elephant camp pic.twitter.com/5S8bhRU67T

— ANI (@ANI) April 9, 2023

It is noteworthy that the 'The Elephant Whisperers' documentary won an Oscar at the 95th Academy Awards.

Helmed by debutant director Kartiki Gonsalves, the 41-minute documentary explores the precious bond between Raghu, an orphaned baby elephant, and his caretakers - a mahout couple named Bomman and Belli - who devote their lives to protect him from poachers and raise him.

The project, which is backed by producer Guneet Monga, beat four other contenders to clinch the statuette in the Best Documentary Short Category, making it the first Indian documentary and one of only two Indian productions to win an Oscar (the other one being `RRR`).

PM Modi's Safari At Bandipur Tiger Reserve On Sunday Morning

Earlier in the day, PM Narendra Modi went on a safari at the Bandipur Tiger Reserve in Karnataka, as part of programmes to mark 50 years of "Project Tiger '.

Modi was dressed in a speckled safari clothing and hat and reportedly covered about 20 km distance in the open jeep.

"Spent the morning at the scenic Bandipur Tiger Reserve and got a glimpse of India's wildlife, natural beauty and diversity", he said in a tweet and shared some pictures in which he can be seen standing in the open jeep, and with a camera and binoculars.

Spent the morning at the scenic Bandipur Tiger Reserve and got a glimpse of India’s wildlife, natural beauty and diversity. pic.twitter.com/X5B8KmiW9w

— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) April 9, 2023

He also shared pictures of elephants, langurs, deer, and bison.

Some more glimpses from the Bandipur Tiger Reserve. pic.twitter.com/uL7Aujsx9t

— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) April 9, 2023

The Tiger Reserve is located partly in Gundlupet taluk of Chamarajanagar district, and partly in H.D.Kote and Nanjangud taluks of Mysuru district.

On his arrival at Melukamanahalli helipad, the Prime Minister travelled by road to Forest Department's reception centre at Bandipur, where he paid respects to the forest martyrs memorial nearby, before leaving for Safari in the forest department's jeep.