Author: Saad Bin Jung
Foreword/Introduction: Mansur Ali Khan, Nawab of Pataudi
Publisher: Roli Books
Year: 2005
Language: English
Pages: 203
ISBN/UPC (if available): 8174363580
Description
For the weary urban dweller, the verdant Mangala valley near the Bandipur National Park in Karnataka, would seem like a haven of peace and tranquillity. Appearances could not be more deceptive, as Saad Bin Jung discovered after forsaking his life in the city for a stone cottage in the valley. If the surrounding jungles were teeming with wildlife of every variety, the life that the humans of the area led was no less wild.
Here, he recounts the adventures that he had with some of them: the leopard who moved into 'bison cottage', the dining hall cobra, the magnificent Mangala tiger, Torn Ears, the most-photographed gaur of his time, and the elephants whom he loved with a passion, Colonel Hathi, Jayaprakash and even the Right-chipped Tusker with his bullying ways, amongst them.
Not to be outdone were the members of the Kuruba tribe and other humans – Mr B, the family expert, the elderly manager with a raging libido, the gorgeous foreign girls who almost saw him booted out of the family – who came to share his life at Bush Betta, the wildlife resort that he set up in 1991.
Hair-raising and hilarious, these are stories that anyone who has had a taste of the wilds, or wished that they could, will enjoy, as much for their drama and comedy as for the many fascinating insights into animal behaviour that they convey. No less compelling is the message between the lines: the grandeur and beauty of India's forests, and the need to preserve them at all costs.
Ever shared your dining table with a cobra or your swimming pool with an elephant? Or come face to face with a tiger in the wilds with Tiger Pataudi as your companion? For all those who love a good yarn as much as the do wildlife, this book about one man’s life in the jungles is essential reading.
Contents
ACKNOWLEDGE
FOREWORD
INTRODUCTION
Map and General Information on Bandipur
National Park
Mangala
A Difficult Welcome
A Tigress Family for Neighbours
An Unpleasant Bully
The First Safari
Torn Ears and Other Animals
The Sloth Bear of Kardi Betta
Killer
The Bandipur Elephants
The Mangala Tiger
Snakes and Other Anecdotes
Shampoo and Chocolate
The Human Jungle
Mr B: An Expert in the Family
Narrations of a Tribal Smuggler
EPILOGUE