A trip to Tadoba Andhari Tiger Reserve..
Four friends and I planned this trip few months ago. November being a good month (everybody says so) for tiger sighting, we packed our backpacks and set our journey.
Train journey for 24 LONG hours was tiresome for me and few other first timers like me.
We swore to devil not to travel for so long by train ever!
Moharli, such a beautiful name for an even more beautiful villege. Brown green patterns of fields border the villege so fine. We planned to take 6 Safaris with our facilitator Raghav from the Inquisitive explorer (TIE) group.
I had not expected that big a crowd for a weekday! but come'on we were going to see the "true King".
If you have read or known a tigers behaviour you will agree with me. Top in the list among natures awesome creations! Witness yourself to know more :)
We were not lucky with the misterious ones this time. Five Safaris and not even one
sighting. You must have seen our faces!
Flushed out and rinsed! When we returned to the camp, the 'lucky' ones who had witnessed gabbar, having shot pictures with digital cameras seemed to be mocking at us - the weird-rich-techie photographers with gears as huge as themselves not even one single pic of a tiger?!!!
Then came "the Day", trumpets please. We witnessed the Pandharpauni queen - Maya- "the beautiful eyes". Both Gabbar and Katezari male Amitabh on hots for a beautiful female tigress as Maya.I guess Gabbar succeeds and Maya had cubs with Gabbar. Unfortunately, these cubs were killed by Caveat cats or some other animals and were found dead.
Here, I really wanted to put my feelings into words. The feeling of having a wild tigress, such a powerful beauty staring right through my soul! The moment our friend Ismail spotted her and started shouting "tiger tiger tiger", our heart beat stopped for a moment. It was HER. And for the first time I totally went boink! Like a snake bite or an acid sting. I am unable to move my fingers. Who knew that sight would struck me like a lightening. I guess Honne took a stand and took responsibility to remind me to click photos. He starts shouting with only words no grammar "Mummy - 600mm - Full frame" . I am laughing my posteriours off now thinking of that moment.But where was I? Panicking more as she is going inside the bushes and we lost hopes again! I was glad atleast I had a glimpse of her. And then, like she heard everyone, she turns away- starts walking towards us. One two three - as she proceeds towards us, we are only eyes and nothing else. OH! what a sight. True personification of the word POWER. She owns that part of Jungle and it was evident she cared a damn for creatures like us!
Then the cameras started clicking. Thousands and millions of clicks. That one with a
majestic walk, she decides where should she go and does not care a few jeeps around her.
She looks around, calm and confident - totally not bothered, she proceeds. For twenty
minutes she blessed us with the sighting.
I want to put that feeling in words. I am not able to. You must feel it once to know it.
Everytime I review those Pictures, I feel that awesomeness. A mixed feeling of fear ,
respect and compassion toward those endangered ones. Long Live the Bengal tiger.
But why is my blog entitled as a trip that made difference to my life? I never had seen a wild cat so close to me. Not just close, but her wild, soul bearing eyes, did the magic. I could see she had a lot of things to say. There was an ocean of feelings in those eyes. I sensed as she walked fearless and confident, that she is the sole empress. She decides what she has to do. She is powerful and strong. And the might she walks with, she can intimidate any other creature thats mere a worm infront of her lethal fierceness.
For a moment when she walked towards me, the religious me also woke up. I remembered the 'Sherowali maa'!!! Laugh if you want to, but I folded my hands unknowingly. I know you are smiling. But that probably was natural. I did not hallucinate, but suddenly remembered, that the Godess on the tiger and her might!! Even if it was imaginary, the sight of it gave me so much strength.
I suggest you all once to spend time in the arms of nature and look at every other living thing.
An encounter with a tiger is the best thing that can happen to you. Like my friend Raghav said, two things will happen. Either you bid adieus to jungle forever, or you know you found a second home!
