In the Jungle

Visiting the Indian forests for the past 10 years, one comes across interesting demands and language with regard to tigers. Apart from the usual ‘ akeli gadi’ and ‘road hi road’ another interesting demand by the guests directed towards the un- suspecting driver or guide is, “Female toh bahut dekh li, lekhin “bhaiya male dekhna hai” (we want to see a male tiger.) As if the pilgrimage without seeing a man of the feline world is incomplete.  For me however, it has always been the lady folk of the feline world who have held special interest. It is probably because of their ability to seem unfazed, undeterred in the face of constant adversity or just the fact that well, they are women. My first ever tigress was in 2010 (I first time I visited Bandhavgarh) by the name of Mahaman female. True to her family name of being shy and elusive, I just about caught a glimpse of her ochre coat in the fading evening light, speeding up a hill, her powerful stride crushing the leaves underfoot and le