‘The Elephant Whisperers’ Couple Bomman And Bellie Allege Exploitation by Makers of Oscar-Winning Documentary

'The Elephant Whisperers' couple Bomman and Bellie recently alleged exploitation by makers of the Oscar-winning documentary.

Written by: India.com Entertainment Desk Edited by: Anurag Singh Bohra

Published: August 7, 2023, 7:56 AM IST

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'The Elephant Whisperers' Couple Bomman And Bellie Allege Exploitation by Makers of Oscar-Winning Documentary

‘The Elephant Whisperers’ Couple Bomman And Bellie Allege Exploitation: The Elephant Whisperers couple Bomman and Bellie have accused the makers of the 2023 Academy Award-winning documentary-short of exploitation. Bomman and Bellie have levelled serious charges against the makers of The Elephant Whisperers. The have claimed financial exploitation and harassment by director Kartiki Gonsalves and Sikhya Entertainment. The couple hasbeen taking care of Elephant babies at the Mudumalai National Park in the border of Karnataka and Tamil Nadu states of India. The short documentary highlighted the same. Recently, President Droupadi Murmi met them and they even got a chance to meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi a few months back.

BOMMAN AND BELLIE ACCUSE ‘THE ELEPHANT WHISPERERS’ MAKERS OF EXPLOITATION

Bomman and Bellie alleged, “Kartiki said she wanted to shoot the wedding scene in one day. However, she did not have the money for it and asked us to arrange the same. It cost us around Rs 1 lakh. Even though Kartiki had promised us that she would return the money, she has not returned it till now. Whenever we call her, she says she is busy and that she will return our calls soon. But she never does,” as reported by multiple media sources. The tribal couple opened up in an interview published in a YouTube channel on August 4, 2023. They also told, “After we returned to Coimbatore from Mumbai, we did not have the money for the journey back to our home in the Nilgiris. When we asked her for money for the journey, she said she did not have any and will arrange it soon.” Bomman and Bellie even recalled an incident where Gonsalves claimed to have paid their remuneration, but upon checking their bank account, they found only Rs 60. Gonsalves, however alleged that they must have spent the money.

SIKHYA ENTERTAINMENT RESPONDS TO BOMMAN AND BELLIE’S ALLEGATIONS

Sikhya Entertainment has responded to the allegations in a statement which read, “The goal in creating The Elephant Whisperers has always been to highlight elephant conservation, the tremendous efforts of the Forest Department and its mahouts Bomman and Bellie. Since its launch, the documentary has raised awareness of the cause and had a real impact on the Mahouts and Cavadis community. Our honourable chief minister of Tamil Nadu, MK Stalin, has made donations towards assisting the 91 Mahouts and Cavadis who look after the state’s elephants, constructing eco-friendly houses for the caretakers and developing an Elephant Camp in the Anamalai Tiger Reserve.” The production house further stated that, “The documentary has been celebrated by heads of state across India, and the Academy Award is a moment of national pride that has brought widespread recognition for the work of mahouts like Bomman and Bellie. All claims made are untrue. We have a deep respect for all of the contributors of this story, and remain driven by the desire to create positive change.”