Aneesh Sankarankutty’s is a 12-year-old love affair. At regular intervals, whenever he feels like it, he treads tough forest tracts to feel the presence of that love.
There is no tete-a-tete. No words exchanged, not even glances. He doesn’t even know if his love interest recognises him. All he knows is that there is an unseen bond he shares with Chullikomban, who lives in the Nelliyampathy forests.
Aneesh gets an “inexplicable joy” watching Chullikomban go about his daily stroll in search of food, travelling between forests during musth, exploring the woods like his own playground, soaking in the sunlight seeping through the thick canopy, and immersing his forest-fed, voluminous mass into streams and ponds.
This joy was first introduced to his basket of emotions as a lad of nine, when he was taken to temple festivals in and around Kattussery village in Alathur, his hometown.
“It was my uncle Unni who used to take me around. The very sight of the elephants was mesmerising. I used to spend hours watching them and befriending their keepers to know more about the animals,” says the elephant researcher and award-winning photographer.
“There have been instances when I used to sleep under them, feeling safe in the canopy they created. The keepers became good friends. Some such friendships I maintain to this date.”
The passion for the pachyderm grew over the years. His attitude towards the animal changed. “I studied engineering but was more keen on photography, and hence took up a course in it. I was drawn to the forests after getting exposed to the animals in their natural habitats such as Walayar, Nelliyampathy, Wayanad, Bandipur, Masinagudi, etc. My friend Sreedhar Vijayakrishnan, who was a researcher, also contributed to my understanding of elephants,” he says.
Thereon, Aneesh’s life hovered around the forests, where he tied up with several local people and researchers such as Vinayan P, planning treks into the forests to wait and watch for hours before getting the perfect click. “But it was not about photography. It was genuinely about how the animals moved and behaved,” he says.
“For that, it was important for me to zero in on specific animals in specific locations. Thus, my tryst with Chullikomban began in Nelliyampathy forests. I now know how and when he would act or react, and what changes I have seen in him over the 15 years I have been watching him. A similar friend of mine is Churulikomban, whom I have been watching for 12 years now. It helps me understand how male elephants behave and how they respond in the wild or when they come in contact with human habitats."
The engineer-turned-environmentalist now works with the Centre for Wildlife Studies, where he manages an elephant project. His job lets him travel, study elephants, and interact with researchers and foresters in the same line of study.
“But my aim is not all these. Well, actually, there is no aim. I am just happy being in the company of elephants. Their calmness makes me feel connected to everything around, and their demeanour is what evokes a serene happiness in me,” Aneesh smiles.
“I have clicked them in the wild and otherwise, and have won about 12 international awards (including Sanctuary Asia, Nature in Focus, a Russian award titled Golden Turtle, the Monochrome Photography Awards, and an Italian competition award called Asferico, etc.) for my clicks. But, if you ask me, they are things that just happened on the way. I just want to be with them. Their calmness made me feel secure even when I was without a job, when I was going through tough times. The bond, actually, is beyond words.”
His love for elephants may not be unusual for people of Kerala, where elephants have always been part of popular human society. And Aneesh feels there is nothing wrong in it. “But you could treat the animals better, even if you have to parade them,” he says.
“Take care of them better. Make them walk with the mahouts so that they can make better bonds with the animals. Don’t transport them like cargo in lorries. Don’t pack their schedule with back-to-back festival appearances. Don’t commercialise them. Don’t torture them.”
As for Aneesh, it’s going to be more years of travel through the forest tracts in Kerala and the roads where he could spot elephants. “I cannot belong anywhere else. My parents, whose only son I am, also know that by now,” Aneesh says. “I love travelling with the elephants. I love to observe them. Silently.”
@aneesh_sankarankutty