While The Elephant Whisperers’ Bomman stated that he has yet to watch the Oscar-winning documentary, Bellie expressed her joy at the big win.
The Elephant Whisperers
The Elephant Whisperers, a Netflix documentary directed by Kartiki Gonsalves and Guneet Monga, won the Oscar for Best Documentary Short Film at the 95th Academy Awards. On the Oscars stage, the filmmaker thanked the couple Bomman and Bellie for sharing a slice of their lives that made the documentary so special. According to reports, the couple has yet to watch the Oscar-winning documentary.
In a recent interview, Bomman stated that he has yet to watch the documentary. “I still don’t know anything about this [Oscar]. But I recognise its significance because everyone has told me that it has brought India much glory. So that means a lot to us,” he said in an interview with Hindustan Times.
Elephant Whisperers, directed by Kartiki Gonsalves, is a Netflix documentary about the loving bond between Bomman and Bellie and the two orphaned elephant calves they raised, Raghu and Ammu. Bomman and his wife are members of the Kattunayakar Tribe, a forest community in Tamil Nadu’s Mudumalai Forest Reserve.
Bellie had expressed her delight that The Elephant Whisperers had won the Academy Award. She also stated that a crew member informed her that they intend to document the lives of the elephant calves and that they have obtained all necessary permissions from the government. “Now that it (the documentary) has won an award; it is a proud moment for the Forest Department, the Mudhumalai camp, and us as well,” she said.