The Elephant Whisperers won an Oscar earlier this month. (courtesy: kartikigonsalves)
Director Kartiki Gonsalves and producer Guneet Monga scripted history at Oscars 2023. Their documentary - The Elephant Whisperers - won the award in the Best Documentary Short Subject category. The plot revolves around the indigenous couple, Bomman and Bellie, who look after an orphaned elephant calf named Raghu at the Mudumalai National Park in Tamil Nadu. Now, Kartiki has shared a video of Bomman and Bellie receiving a heartwarming welcome on an Ooty flight. In the clip, the airline crew member is seen addressing passengers onboard. He says, “ "Some of you might not know, that award for the best documentary short subject at the 95th Academy Awards was given to The Elephant Whisperers. Today, we have the main team of the documentary onboard with us. So give them a round of applause.” In the next scene, we can see Bomman and Bellie expressing their gratitude to everyone. The text on the video read, “Flying to Ooty with the stars of The Elephant Whisperers on board. Shout out to IndiGo airlines for the special mention.”
Kartiki Gonsalves, who was overwhelmed by the gesture, wrote, “IndiGo and thanks to @manikems for capturing this.” The video has spread like wildfire on social media. Bollywood celebrities have also expressed their happiness in the comments section. Actress Dia Mirza wrote, “Oh my heart brought tears of joy! Thank you for sharing this, Kartiki.” To this, the director replied, “we are very lucky to have people like Bomman and Bellie. I'm so glad they are getting all the love and recognition! This is to all the people like them for working day in and day helping and protecting our natural world.”
Actress Freida Pinto wrote, “Wow this brought tears to my eyes. This is a win worth applauding for the rest of our lives.” Kartiki, in her reply, said, “They deserve every bit of it…. It's so special how much the world is loving this. They are overwhelmed with love.” Actor Rajveer Ankur Singh loved the “beautiful gesture”. Actress Suchitra Pillai simply wrote “amazing” under the post.
Director Kartiki Gonsalves also shared a picture of Bomman and Bellie holding the Oscar.
In another update, Kartiki Gonsalves said that Bomman and Bellie are now “foster parents” to another orphaned baby elephant from Dharmapuri”.
The Elephant Whisperers was up against these documentaries Haulout, How Do You Measure A Year? The Martha Mitchell Effect and Stranger At The Gate.