The Elephant Whisperers

Raghu was an half-starved baby elephant whose tail had been bitten off by stray dogs when he was found by Bomman, a kindly elephant carer who works on a conservation park in India that exists to protect the at-risk Asian elephant population. Rearing the youngsters is notoriouly difficult, but allied with the equally loving Bellie, the pair manage to get this charatreful critter back onto his hooves and spraying water as well as "Dumbo" ever did. What we see here amidst the luscious scenery, is an neatly photographed example of the synergies possible between man and beast, and it's an entertaining and touching short feature to watch - interwoven, as it is, with a little bit of human romance that reminds him that Bellie isn't going to marry anyone covered in ash. She doesn't seem to mind the smell of elephant so much - even if they do spend quite a lot of time scrubbing it. As he ages, it becomes time for Raghu to move on, but there is another equally vulnerable young animal whom they name Ammu whose herd strayed into a village and whose mother was inadvertantly electrocuted to look after, and so the cycle starts all over again. This is a quite a poignant little observation of how simple actions like washing and feeding, playing and hugging - and even storytelling, can make all the difference to the health and wellbeing of not just these elephants, but to their human counterparts too and it's well worth a look.