All language subtitles for Tigers.on.the.Rise.2024

Downloaded from
YTS.MX

Official YIFY movies site:
YTS.MX

[birds calling]

[narrator] Disneynature's Tiger
tells the story of a young tigress

raising her four cubs
in the jungles of India.

This film reveals what happens

when those cubs leave their mother's side

and head off
to find territories of their own.

In the forest reserve where they live,

tiger numbers have doubled
in the last 15 years.

And now, they're running out of space.

So young tigers must leave
the safety of these sanctuaries.

And enter a new world...

shared with people.

There are many challenges to face...

[truck honking]

...but some tigers are learning to adapt.

Fortunately, there are people out there
trying to help them.

While making Disneynature's Tiger,

the crew teamed up with a group
of exceptionally dedicated individuals,

finding ways for people
and tigers to co-exist.

[laughing]

[♪ emotional music playing]

[birds calling in distance]

They're the world's most loved animal.

Majestic...

but elusive.

It's hard enough to see a tiger...

much less film one.

For Disneynature's Tiger,

the camera team spent over 1,500 days
in the jungles of India,

filming over five years.

Their patience has paid off,

capturing some of the rarest moments
of tiger life.

[growls]

For some scenes, the team goes
to extraordinary lengths to get the shots.

While the tiger heads out for a drink,

the crew pops in to check
their remote cameras.

It's a tense moment...

but it's worth it.

It's rolling around like a kitten.
That's amazing.

[narrator] Some of the other animals
can get a little too friendly.

Excuse me.

Excuse me, Mr. Treepie.

Ooh.

[narrator] The hidden cameras
are only designed to be tiger-proof.

[elephant grunting]

[grunting]

[camera clanking]

This camera's life is trunk-ated.

[shattering]

Yeah, bit of tape and that would be fine.

[team chuckling]

[♪ uplifting music playing]

[narrator] Two of the many camera people
involved in the movie

are Indian filmmakers Pooja Rathod

and Kalyan Varma.

[Pooja] Tigers are secretive by nature.

They will only show themselves
if they want to be seen.

The tiger is like a ghost in the forest.

You'd be seeing it for a minute,

and the next moment,
it would camouflage so beautifully.

And because of its stripes
and the way it moves,

it can disappear so quickly.

[Kalyan] Filming tigers,
first of all, you need to find them.

There are many days
you just don't see tigers.

And you need to be waiting
for that perfect moment,

be there with your camera
running at the right angle.

I really think tigers are
the hardest species in the world to film.

[narrator] Pooja and Kalyan have spent
many days filming one tigress

and have earned her trust.

[Pooja whispers] There's one cub there
and the mother's below.

We're just watching a tigress
with her cubs right there.

She's allowed us so close,
which is very, very unusual for a tigress

because they're generally secretive
and very careful when they have cubs

as young as they are,
they're about six to eight months.

The cubs are playing and she's absolutely
unbothered by our presence.

It's a very exciting moment.

Isn't it just nice to be sitting here

when they're sleeping
right in front of us?

[♪ mellow music playing]

[birds chirping]

[grumbles softly]

[Kalyan] But imagine the amount of work
that she's doing, right?

She has to hunt,
she has to feed all these cubs.

She's really a super mom.

Seeing a mother with cubs
is so, so rare in the wild and up close.

It's just, yeah, it's... it's a privilege.

[narrator] Over two years,
the crew watched the cubs growing up

before their eyes.

At first,
they're a bit unsteady on their paws.

[♪ playful music playing]

[cub whining]

As the cubs grow,
they learn the ways of the jungle.

They discover
which animals they can hunt...

[bird cawing]

…and which ones are not worth the effort.

This unique footage

paints the most intimate portrait
of tiger family life ever captured.

[♪ uplifting music playing]

For Pooja and Kalyan, the toughest moment
is watching the cubs head off.

At 18 months,
it's time to leave their mother's side

and find a territory of their own.

[Pooja] As a cameraperson filming tigers

and following
a particular cub for so long,

it's... it's very hard
to not get attached to an individual.

You see the cub when it's two months old,

and then you see it grow
to almost a year and a half,

and then one fine day,
you know that cub is going to leave.

[♪ slow gentle music playing]

[Pooja] I really feel emotional.

I just hope that he makes it
wherever he goes.

[♪ dramatic music playing]

[narrator] The number of young tigers
searching for new territory is rising.

Thanks to increased protection,

there are now over 3,600 tigers
across 54 reserves,

but space in these is limited.

So a third of India's tigers
must live outside protected areas.

Here, they find less wild prey,
but plenty of easy meals.

[cowbell ringing]

And that's bad news for farmers.

But there are simple things
that can be done to help,

and there's someone who's willing to try.

[♪ cheerful music playing]

Dr. Bilal Habib
from the Wildlife Institute of India

is the scientific consultant
for Disneynature's Tiger.

He's one of
the country's top tiger experts

and loves solving problems.

Bilal has come
to Maharashtra in central India,

the heart of Tiger country.

[Bilal] This is a place
where there's a lot of conflict.

A lot of cattle are being killed,

and these cattle are actually
lifeline for these villagers

because it's their livelihood.

[narrator] Today,
Bilal is testing out his latest idea...

once he makes it through the traffic.

[car honking]

[cow mooing]

It's an unusual approach to help cut
the number of cows lost to tigers.

[background chatter]

Sometimes, you only find the way forward,
by looking behind.

[cow mooing]

[background chatter]

Bilal and his team are painting
eyes on cows' tail ends

while trying not to get kicked.

[Bilal speaking Hindi]

[painter in Hindi] Careful.

[cow mooing]

Be careful.

Keep it bright with red.

Draw a black dot inside the eye

to make it look like a cow's round eye.

[painter] Like this?

- We all have different ideas.
- [laughter]

[narrator in English] It's hoped
the eyes will fool tigers

into thinking they're being watched.

Bilal and his crew have now painted
hundreds of rear-ends,

and it seems to be working.

The number of attacks
has fallen dramatically.

There's a village
where one of the tigers was very active

and people have lost most of the cattle
to that particular individual.

As soon as we painted the cattle
with eyes, this tiger immediately shifted.

Probably, tiger realized that
there's cattle now

who can see on both sides,

who can see from the front
and who can see from the back.

And the next time
when we went to that village,

every person came with cattle
for painting.

They said, "Oh, please paint our cattle.
It's good. It's helping us."

[narrator] Bilal now plans to roll out
this simple idea

across the whole of India.

[cow mooing]

For the last ten years,

Bilal has also been involved
with another project,

but on a very different scale.

[indistinct chattering]

He's come with Disney's cameraman Kalyan

and remote camera expert Suman Raju
to check on its progress.

It all started a decade ago

when Bilal was asked
to solve a major problem.

Young tigers looking for a new territory

struggle to find their way
between reserves,

which are often hundreds of miles apart.

They face many obstacles on their journey…

[train honking]

...but there's one barrier
that's toughest of all.

Highways.

[trucks honking]

[growls]

Built over a hundred years ago,

the NH44 is India's oldest highway,

spanning the length of the entire country.

[Bilal] We have roads.

We have a lot of traffic

which actually make it impossible

for these animals
to go from one place to other place.

[narrator] Some tigers travel
thousands of miles,

but when they meet the highway...

they have to turn back.

[♪ somber music playing]

Bilal's solution was simple,

to lift the road up
to allow the tigers to travel underneath,

creating a wildlife corridor.

It cost two and a half billion dollars.

It's the world's biggest
wildlife underpass

with nine elevated sections.

And it's saving the lives
of countless tigers.

[♪ uplifting music playing]

[Bilal] When I stand there
and look on those massive structures

which our country has built for the tigers

to walk from one side of the forest
to the other side,

it really feels emotional.

[narrator] Kalyan and Suman
have been capturing

close-up shots of tigers
using the underpass.

[Suman] Wow.

- Amazing, yeah?
- [Suman] Yeah.

[narrator] There are now
over 200 tiger crossings every year.

So imagine that vehicles going on top

and there are tigers
which are moving beneath these vehicles,

and neither the lorry drivers
nor the tigers know

they are at the same place
at the same time.

So that's what the dream was
and it's, it's, it's amazing.

[Pooja] So I think
she walked on this path.

[Suman] Exactly same trail.

[narrator] Pooja has come to help Suman
capture footage of a very special tigress.

- [Pooja] Amazing vantage point for her.
- [Suman] Absolutely,

and this is the best place
to set up the camera trap.

[narrator] What's unusual
about this tigress...

is that she lives in a city.

Bhopal in Central India.

Home to 2.5 million people.

[honking]

Like any modern city,
by day, it's a noisy bustling metropolis.

[honking]

But as most of the town's inhabitants
head home,

another resident is heading out.

In a patch of forest
that extends into the middle of the city,

a young tigress
is patrolling her territory.

[motorbike revving, honking]

In the seven years she's lived here,

she's figured out
how to live alongside people.

This tigress is pretty much
a resident of the city,

but she's an invisible resident.

She's crossing fences,

she's walking on roads,
she's in farmlands,

but she's never seen by anyone.

And that just shows
an incredible adaptation.

She's perfected that skill
of avoiding people

and it's amazing that in all the years
that she's been here,

she hasn't hurt anyone
and she's just going about her life.

[narrator] The tigress
only travels at night

and returns to her cave
before the city wakes up.

Suman has been following
this tigress for two years.

His data is helping the forest department
to understand how she lives.

Suman was drawn here

by the idea of documenting
the lifestyle of an urban tiger.

You see, I'm just gonna walk.

Yeah, you sit there
so that we can take the photo.

- [Pooja] I'll walk down here.
- [Suman] Yeah.

[Suman] Bhopal has
a special place for tiger.

No other city you could see
tiger moving so close to people.

This is really fascinating to me.

[narrator] A modern city
may not seem like "tiger habitat",

but Bhopal has everything a tiger needs.

It sits alongside
Ratapani Wildlife Sanctuary,

where she can hunt and take cover.

There are man-made reservoirs,
so the tigress will never go thirsty.

And she sleeps in sandstone caves
in the hills above the city.

As long as she doesn't harm anyone,

her human neighbors are happy
for the tigress to share their home.

[horns honking]

[Pooja] I think the people of Bhopal
are really proud of having tigers here.

And it's so unusual
because it's a predator

and everywhere else, people fear them,

but here, they're so proud
of having her in their backyard.

[narrator] The city loves the tigress
and is taking major steps to protect her.

The forest department
employs 40 people to keep tabs on her.

Each evening, roads are closed
in her territory

to allow her safe passage.

A network of CCTV towers
tracks her movements.

[officer in Hindi] We are getting
the location of the tiger.

[narrator in English]
In charge of operations

is Divisional Forest Officer Alok Pathak.

Yes, please go ahead,
put camera traps there.

Ah, I love the tigress very, very much.

She is very delicate,
nice, beautiful I should say.

People of Bhopal feel very proud
and very happy also

to have tigers in the vicinity.

[Suman] I think
we'll try to place the trap here.

[narrator] Pooja and Suman
are now deploying

extra remote cameras across her territory

to see if the tigress has had cubs.

The whole city is hoping
to hear the patter of tiny paws.

[bird calling]

All across India, the tiger occupies
a special place in people's hearts.

[Pooja] For a lot of people in India,

tiger, which is also called as Waghoba,
is Dev, which means he's God.

A lot of people worship it,
especially in the rural areas,

for its strength and power
and the fact that it rules the forest.

[narrator] Tigers have lived with people
for thousands of years.

They're adored like royalty...

[♪ upbeat festive music playing]

...and celebrated with festivals.

It's this connection that allows
humans and tigers to live side by side.

[Pooja] I think India stands out
amongst most nations in the world

for the kind of tolerance

that the people of the country show
towards wildlife, especially tigers.

[narrator] Tigers living around
the edges of reserves

soon learn to avoid humans.

[dog barking in distance]

[indistinct chattering]

By day, they rest out of sight.

[insects chirping]

[indistinct chattering]

If they hear someone coming,
they stay hidden.

[indistinct chattering in distance]

They only come out at dusk,
when the people have left.

[Pooja] Tigers don't look at humans
as prey.

In fact, they are quite afraid of people,
of anything standing on two feet,

they're afraid of them.

[narrator] But tragic accidents can occur.

When villagers work late in the forest,

a young inexperienced tiger
may mistake them for prey animals.

[Kalyan] When a human being crouches down,

from a tiger's point of view,
that looks like a prey species.

Almost all human deaths
because of tigers are accidental deaths.

[narrator] In some parts of India,
the rise in tiger numbers

is causing a dramatic spike in attacks.

[Pooja] Increasing tiger numbers is
good news, you know.

It's a conservation success story
for the world.

But a lot of people pay a price
for this rise in tiger numbers.

What is at stake is the years of tolerance

that people have shown
towards these tigers.

[♪ light music playing]

[narrator] While filming
on the edges of tiger reserves,

Pooja and Kalyan have witnessed
the efforts of the people

working to keep both villagers
and tigers safe.

[villager speaking Hindi]

[in Hindi] Everyone please huddle.

[narrator in English] The Forest
Department Primary Response team

is the first to be called
when there's a problem tiger.

[speaking Hindi]

Forest Guard Shital Thakre
has been doing the job for six years.

Today, her team has been called
to a village

where someone has been killed.

[in Hindi] When we get
a call from the village,

we go there to see what's happened.

We feel terrible to find that
a woman has been killed by a tiger.

[narrator in English] The primary
response team is sent in

to identify the problem tiger

so it can be captured
and taken into captivity.

With the tiger still nearby,

Shital's priority is
to keep the people safe.

[in Hindi] There are wild animals
moving through the farms.

So nobody should stay late
on the farms or go into the forest.

[narrator in English] In this area,
on the outskirts of Tadoba National Park,

the number of tigers
has quadrupled in just ten years.

[chattering in Hindi]

[in Hindi] This is not a one-off incident.
There are many like this.

If there's an incident anywhere,

we have to get ready
and go there straight away.

We have to be alert 24 hours a day.

[chattering in Hindi]

[narrator in English]
Tigers are most active at night.

[team howling]

Shital and her team
sweep the surrounding area,

hoping to push the tiger
away from the village.

[team howling]

It's a dangerous job.

- [explosive booms]
- [howling continues]

[team member in Hindi]
Pay attention at the back.

[narrator in English] They need to
identify which tiger they're dealing with.

Rakesh, the team biologist,
studies images caught on remote cameras.

[Rakesh] Um, six.

[narrator] Every tiger has
a unique set of stripes.

By comparing them,
he can see it's a young male called P2.

- [Rakesh in Hindi] Let's go.
- [team yelling]

[team chattering]

[narrator in English] The presence
of the team overnight

helps the villagers feel safer.

The rising number of tigers
is raising fears.

[Shital in Hindi] There's limited space

and there will be more problems
in years to come.

We have to help people understand

that tigers don't usually kill humans.

These are accidents.

We will try to make sure
that this doesn't happen in the future.

[team chattering]

[sizzling]

[narrator in English] Shital lives alone,
a long way from home.

At times like this,
she misses her family more than ever.

[tool clanking]

Hi.

[laughter]

[in Hindi] Tell me how's your health?

Everything is well.

[laughter on phone]

[Shital's relative 1]
Come home. Mother has made sabzi.

[Shital's relative 2]
When are you coming to the village?

Yes. I'll come.
[chuckles]

- [in English] Bye-bye.
- [Shital] Bye-bye.

[narrator] Shital's family
wants her to return to the village,

but she feels a strong calling
for this work.

[Shital in Hindi]
I love my job at the forest,

I like that I am in touch with the jungle,
the animals and the people.

So for now,
I want to continue living alone.

[narrator in English] Shital is proud
to be one of the few women doing her job.

[in Hindi] I want to tell women
to fulfill their dreams.

If they want to become
a forest guard or anything else,

they must go for it.

[narrator] Back at the village,

Shital and her team are under pressure
to remove the problem tiger.

[chatter in Hindi]

And when a tiger needs capturing,

the person to call is wildlife vet
Dr. Ravi Khobrogade.

- [animal grunting]
- When he's not catching tigers,

Ravi is caring for orphaned animals
at his treatment center,

like this baby sloth bear.

[Ravi] We have to do hand-rearing.

Right now we are behaving like her mother.

[narrator] When the call comes through,

Ravi has to mobilize
his rapid rescue team.

They've been asked to tranquilize
the problem tiger P2

and take him away from the village.

P2 will be their 50th tiger capture
if they can find him.

[Ravi] We have to think like a tiger.

This is the big lesson that I learned
from the rescue of tigers.

I must know
what will be the next step of the tiger.

[♪ dramatic music playing]

[narrator] Ravi and his team are searching
for a single tiger, known as P2.

He's a moving needle in a giant haystack.

The plan is to capture P2
and take him into captivity,

but it's not going to be easy.

Two days later, Ravi hears that
P2 has killed a cow on the edge of a farm.

They plan to stake out the location
hoping that P2 returns to feed.

[indistinct chattering]

Ravi's assistant, Ajay, will be using
a dart gun to tranquilize the tiger.

[Ravi] Okay. Done.

[indistinct chattering]

[narrator] Ravi and Ajay
settle in for the night.

[insects chirping]

[Ravi] Tiger is always clever, man,

that's why he's the king of jungle.

So we must think
to overcome their cleverness.

Now we are just waiting
and watching all around us.

[insects chirping]

[narrator] It was a long wait...

with nothing to show for it.

Yesterday's night is too hard for us

and tiger animal is not come.

So let us see.

Again we try.

Try again, try again, we'll get success.

[narrator] A week later,
the team catch a break.

There's been a sighting of P2
and they rush to the spot.

[Ravi in Hindi] Ajay,
can you see the tiger there?

[narrator in English] At last,
they get their first glimpse of P2.

They need to dart his back end,

so they must wait
until he's facing the right way.

[♪ suspenseful music playing]

[soft grunting]

[Ravi in Hindi] Can we take the shot?

[Ajay] I can see the tiger
but it's in a head-on position.

[Ravi in English] The shot is risky.

[Ravi in Hindi] Let's not take the shot
unless we get the right position.

[narrator in English]
P2 slips back into the forest.

[Ravi] Oh, my God.

[narrator] They've missed their chance.

But overnight, a remote camera
has captured a fresh image.

The team picks up the trail.

P2 is only 20 yards away.

They just need him to turn around.

[P2 grumbles softly]

[♪ suspenseful music playing]

Bullseye.

Weighing around 500 pounds,

it takes the whole crew
to carry P2 to the transport cage.

[Ravi speaking Hindi]

[Ravi's team speaking Hindi]

It's a huge relief for Ravi's team.

[indistinct chatter]

And a welcome sight for the villagers.

[chattering]

We've revived it
and now he's very comfortable, relaxed.

It's a very good tiger,
it's around two and a half years old,

it's a sub-adult and male
and a massive male also.

You see the villagers, they are very happy

because they think that
they have solved the problem.

[horn honking]

[narrator] The community comes out
to see the tiger off.

[horn honking]

On the three-hour journey
to the treatment center,

Ravi feels conflicted.

I just feel very sorry
when I, uh, put the tiger in the cage.

When I saw the tiger in the field,
I darted him, and I send it to the zoo.

At that time, our team will get very sad

that we just end the freedom
of that particular fellow.

[horn honking]

[Ravi's teammate speaking Hindi]

[narrator] The treatment center
is just a temporary holding place for P2.

Ravi will now try to find him
a permanent home at a zoo.

[P2 grumbles softly]

P2 will never return to the wild,

but relocating him will help local people
remain tolerant of tigers.

[grumbles]

[animals calling]

Not far away, on the eastern edge
of Tadoba National Park,

some other tigers
are also being moved to a new home,

but for a very different reason.

Bilal is planning to do
some tiger match-making.

He's hoping to gather
five females from here

and introduce them to potential mates.

A hundred and twenty miles north,
in Nagzira National Park,

tiger numbers are on the rise
but they're mostly males.

[growls]

Male tigers find it easier than females
to reach here from faraway forests.

But without females,
the population is doomed.

And there's another benefit
to Bilal's plan.

He's taking the tigresses away
from an area where there's lots of people.

[bleating]

[Bilal] It's a win-win situation.

If we are successful in getting
at least five, six females

from this particular landscape
to the other area,

so it's good for everybody,

for conservation,
for tigers and for people.

[narrator] It's an ambitious
and visionary idea,

but first,
they have to find the right tiger.

They're deliberately looking
for a shy tigress,

one that will avoid humans
and their livestock.

But a shy tiger is tricky to catch.

Ravi the vet and his team
are here for the capture.

There are clear signs of the tiger...

[Bilal] This is the pugmark of a female.

[narrator] But she stays hidden from view.

[Bilal speaking Hindi]

After several days and nights searching,

it's proving harder than they thought.

[Bilal speaking Hindi]

[narrator] If they can't catch
the first female,

the whole match-making project will fail
before it's even started.

[Bilal] They are so shy.

Even if they are just resting
ten meters away from you,

it's very difficult to spot them.

So that makes it very difficult for us
to track her and to capture her.

[narrator] It may be months
before Bilal has a tigress to move.

Pooja and Kalyan are witnessing
another impact of rising tiger numbers.

More tigers fighting over territory.

[tiger rumbling softly]

This young tiger has blundered
into the path of a huge male.

[♪ suspenseful music playing]

[growling]

The older tiger makes it clear
they're not welcome.

One side usually backs down.

But sometimes,
the loser can get badly hurt.

[grunting]

Pooja and Kalyan
have come across a wounded male.

Their footage will help forest guards
identify the tiger

when they report the injury.

Look to your right.

I'm zoomed in fully, I can see the wound.

He's licking the wound right now.

Ah, he's limping, oh God.

I think he's quite badly injured.

He's limping at the moment
and he has this really bad injuries

so I'm really worried for him
because there are lots of tigers here

and he's just going to have to fight
or leave to be able to survive.

[Kalyan] He's licking his wounds

but if they don't heal,
he's in real big danger

because he has only two options.

One is he just won't be able to hunt
and he'll die of starvation.

The only other option is that he starts
picking easy prey, which is cattle.

And that's the start
of human-wildlife conflict.

And usually, that doesn't end well
for the tigers.

[narrator] The forest guards will now
keep an eye on the tiger,

and if necessary,
bring it into Ravi's treatment center.

[tiger growling]

For Ravi, the rise in tigers means
there are many more cubs to care for.

Today, he's looking after a young tigress
who's become separated from her mother.

[Ravi] She's around
five to six months old.

But when we observed in the field,
she is emaciated, dehydrated and so weak.

So that's why we rescued from the field

and we are monitoring,
we are locating the female

so that the cub will be reunited
with the female

and she will remain in the wild.

That will be the happy ending
for the female cub.

[narrator] There's good news for P2,
the captured tiger.

Ravi will soon be sending him
to a new home.

He's going to one of the world's
largest zoos in the city of Nagpur,

where he'll share an enclosure
with a female tiger.

[Ravi] P2.

P2, how are you?

[grumbles softly]

Don't worry.

You will get the big enclosure,

get the new females also.

Then you will enjoy life.

So don't worry.

[indistinct chattering]

[narrator] P2 is lucky.

Roughly half of all tigers
leaving protected areas don't make it.

[indistinct chattering]

A female tiger has been found dead
and brought into Ravi's center.

He confirms her cause of death
and conducts her cremation.

[indistinct chattering]

The funeral rites reflect the honor
and respect held for every tiger.

[Ravi] It's a very black day for us.

Because we lost a full-grown
adult tigress due to such...

unbelievable thing that is electrocution.

That should not happen.

[narrator] Electrocution is
the number one cause of tiger deaths.

Electric fencing is
often placed around fields

to stop wild deer and boar
from eating the crops.

But the tigers don't see the wires
until it's too late.

One female can produce four cubs in a year

so you can imagine
the loss of the wild tigers.

- [teacher in Hindi] Stand at ease.
- [students speaking Hindi]

- [teacher] Attention.
- [students speaking Hindi]

[narrator in English] To avoid
more tiger deaths in the future,

the next generation
needs to understand more about them.

[all singing Hindi]

Shital and Rakesh have come to a school
on the edge of Tadoba National Park.

They're here to share their knowledge
of tigers with the kids

and teach them what to do
if they meet one.

[in Hindi] Have you ever seen a tiger?

[students] Yes.

[Shital] What will you do
when you spot a tiger?

Will you run?

If you run,
he'll think that you're his prey.

Just make noise and stay where you are.

[Rakesh] Can you see the tiger?

[students] No.

[Rakesh] Did you see it? Where is it?

Did you spot him?

[students] Yes.

- [Rakesh] What do you see?
- [students in English] Tiger.

[students laughing]

- [Rakesh in Hindi] Did it run away?
- [students speak Hindi]

- [students chuckle]
- [Rakesh speaks Hindi]

[narrator in English] Shital hopes
the kids will share these safety tips

with their friends and families.

[Shital in Hindi] When we explain this
to the children in the school,

they will explain it to their parents.

So this message can spread,

and human-wildlife conflict
can be reduced.

[chattering]

[narrator in English] Lessons over,

the class heads out
to a patch of degraded forest,

to help replant the area with trees.

[♪ light music playing]

[in Hindi]
When these plants grow into trees,

wild animals can rest under their shade.

Students, do you want
to become a forest guard like Shital?

- [students] Yes.
- [Rakesh] Hm?

[students] Yes.

[indistinct chattering]

[Rakesh] Do you feel good
planting the tree?

[students] Yes.

[Rakesh] When you pass by
this tree, you'll remember planting it.

[chatter in Hindi]

[♪ bright music playing]

[narrator in English]
After six months of trying,

Bilal has finally caught a tigress.

She's on her way to meet the lonely males
waiting for her at Nagzira National Park.

If she makes a match,
she'll help repopulate the reserve.

Instead of having to find
her own territory,

she's taking the easy way,
hitching a ride.

NAWEGAON-NAGZIRA TIGER RESERVE
PITEZARI ENTRANCE

In Nagzira, she'll have lots of space...

and every chance of meeting a mate.

[in Hindi] Okay,
five or six people come fast.

We can't waste time.

[vet speaking Hindi]

[narrator in English] The tigress
has been tranquilized

so that Bilal and the vet team
can give her a health check

and attach a GPS collar
before she's released.

[vets speaking Hindi]

[narrator] The collar will enable Bilal
to track the tiger's movements

as she starts to explore
her new territory.

It will stay attached for the next year

and will then be remotely triggered
to fall off by itself.

Ravi the vet is on hand
to monitor the tiger's condition

and make sure she is fit for release.

[speaking Hindi]

They check her weight and measurements,

to add to their growing database
of tigers.

[Bilal speaking Hindi]

[overlapping chatter]

She's young, you have seen her teeth.

They are shining white
with a very small groove on that,

which indicates that she is
around two years of age.

So she is actually of that particular age

where she's going to go out,
look for a territory

and look for a partner
and then raise her cubs of her own.

[narrator] It's the first project
of its kind in India

and it's attracting a lot of attention.

The tiger will be released
by the state Forest Minister.

[speaking Hindi]

Basically, this is the final day,
this is we can say the marriage day.

See this, all people are very happy

because we are going to introduce
the female in the area of the males.

[♪ bright music playing]

[indistinct radio chatter]

[narrator] Five years of planning
have all come down to this moment.

In the next ten minutes,
she's going to be out there in the wild.

[♪ dramatic music playing]

[narrator] It's time
to release the tigress into her new home.

[growling softly]

[roaring]

[♪ upbeat music playing]

- [laughing]
- [crowd cheering]

[murmuring]

Finally, we did it.

As she just came out from the cage,
she is so happy in my sense,

because she is going to the wild.

This is heaven for her.

She may have the cute,
cute tigress cubs so she will enjoy.

[Bilal] This is a place of hope for her

where she has a higher chance of breeding,

having a territory of her own,
having a litter of her own,

having a home of her own.

It's really a great feeling
but the real job begins from tomorrow,

when she will start exploring a territory
where she has never been.

[narrator] Over the next few months,

Bilal and his team follow the tiger
around the clock.

Using signals from the collar,
they track her on the ground

and also from space,

mapping her every move.

The tigress is settling in well.

She hasn't strayed into any villages.

And she's got company.

It's now four months,
and this female is doing perfectly fine.

She has established her territory.

[buzzing]

She has been seen
many times with the male.

So we hope that
she has also mated a couple of times.

And we hope that, in coming days,
she's going to litter,

she's going to produce young ones
in this new territory.

[narrator] So far so good.

The move is a success.

Over the next year,

four more female tigers
will be brought here

to help boost the population.

[Bilal] So this was a dream
and it has come true.

And we can continue to follow
these tigers in Nagzira

and see how this population is going
to do in the next five, ten years.

[narrator] Meanwhile,
Ravi has come to see P2 in his new home,

Gorewada Zoo,
one of the largest in the world.

P2 now has a huge natural enclosure,

and will soon be joined by a new female.

[Ravi] It's a very good morning

because I'm just very happy
to see P2 tiger.

Having the 60 acres enclosure,
it's a very good space for any tiger.

[growls softly]

[narrator] P2 has a new role,

as an ambassador for tigers.

[♪ mellow music playing]

[Ravi] Everyone can visit him,

and everyone can know him.

If you see the tiger for a while,
you will never forget it,

because it's so beautiful, so majestic.

[tourists chattering]

[narrator] P2 may never
go back to the wild

but he will help inspire
the next generation

to care about the future of tigers.

Pooja and Kalyan also want to inspire
people to think about tigers differently.

[speaking Hindi]

They've come to a village
close to Tadoba Tiger Reserve.

A lot of people who are here
have misconceptions about tigers.

They think all tigers are man-eaters
and that they are there to harm them.

[narrator] Pooja and Kalyan
have created a short film

that they're about to screen
for the first time.

A crowd of over 300
have gathered for the show,

including forest guard Shital
and her team.

[crowd chattering]

- Hello.
- [villagers] Hello.

[in Hindi] Hi, my name is Pooja.

And I'm going to show you
a short film about tigers.

This film will give you
a message from the tiger.

So do you want to watch this story?

[all] Yes!

- Okay.
- Okay, let's start.

[applause, chattering]

[narrator in English]
The story is narrated

in the local language, Marathi,

from the point of view of the tiger.

[narrator in film in Marathi]
Days pass by and we grow up

bigger and stronger.

[narrator in English] For the villagers,

it's the first time they're seeing
images of tiger family life.

[narrator in film in Marathi] We're ready
to follow mom on her adventures.

[narrator in English]
The film shows the cubs

coming to grips with their jungle home,

and the challenges they face growing up.

[monkey barks]

[tiger whines]

[villagers chuckling]

The film also gives villagers tips
on how to stay safe in the forest.

[in Marathi] If you must come
into the forest,

walk in groups and make noise

so I know you're there
and I can avoid you.

[Pooja in English]
I'm really overwhelmed.

Just looking at the crowd, looking at
how just hooked to the screen they were.

The people who came here to watch the film
have real-life problems.

They have interactions with tigers
on a daily basis.

If this film even saves one life,
I think we've done our job.

[in Hindi] Thank you for coming.

We'll meet soon. Thank you.

[narrator in English]
And the message is spreading.

In some places, a new attitude to tigers
is creating surprising opportunities.

Bilal is on his way
to the village of Alijanja.

[rooster crowing]

Co-existence will only be possible
if this is economically beneficial

to the local people,

who share their landscape
with these large predators.

[narrator] Instead of battling
with the wildlife on their door-step,

the community here is embracing it.

In the first re-wilding project
of its kind in India,

farmers are paid
to keep their cattle off the grasslands.

This encourages wild animals,

which naturally attract tigers,

who bring in tourists.

[in Hindi] There are
four female tigresses in our zone.

And all of them have cubs.

And their father is called
Chota Matka, the male tiger.

[indistinct chatter]

[narrator in English] Local guide Arvind
now makes a living

from taking tourists on nature walks
in the landscape.

[Arvind] Kingfisher bird!

[narrator] A small eco-lodge
is also creating jobs for local people.

[in Hindi] We are getting good income and
all the families of the village are happy.

We never cause any damage to the forest

and in the future, we will preserve
the forest because it's our livelihood.

[narrator in English]
Bilal has been helping

since the project started in 2015.

[speaking Hindi]

He's loved seeing how local attitudes
towards wildlife have changed.

[Bilal] Imagine when this was not
a nature conservancy.

So the farmers were trying to protect
this land from crop-raiding deers.

So they were considered as pests.

Today, the same farmer
wants to see deer in his land

because that's giving more money.

So this is how the landscape
has converted a pest into a resource.

[narrator] The more deer,

the more tigers.

In this village, the current rise in tiger
numbers is a cause for celebration.

[Arvind in Hindi] As the tiger population
increases, so does the number of tourists.

Which is good for us.

Now we're getting paid well.

[Bilal in English] This is
the first example of rewilding farmland

close to a protected area in India.

So if this is successful,

there can be hundreds and hundreds
of nature conservancies in India.

[narrator] Back in Bhopal,
home to the urban tigress,

Pooja and Suman
are checking their remote cameras.

- Come only after sunset.
- [Pooja] Mm.

[narrator] They're hoping to see
the first images of her cubs.

- Hey. Let's see what we've got.
- Yeah.

- [Suman] Oh, my God.
- [Pooja] Oh, there's the mother.

Followed by the cubs.

[Pooja] Wow.

[Suman] The first cub coming out.

- Wow.
- Oh, wow.

[chuckles]

[narrator] The urban tigress has
four cubs, now aged around five months.

- Oh, my God, the one after the other.
- [Pooja] Yeah.

[Suman] All of them are peeping
their heads into the fence.

[Pooja] Wow.

She just, like, squeezed in,
she's too big for it.

Yeah, so cute actually.

It's teaching them
how to come out from the fence.

Isn't it so lovely, right?

And they're so quick learners.

[Pooja] They look pretty healthy.

[Suman] Yeah, absolutely healthy.

Such a beautiful shot we got.

[narrator] Bhopal's tigress is bringing up
the next generation of urban tigers.

They're now learning
how to be street-smart cubs.

[Pooja] She's raising these four cubs

and she's actually
showing them her territory,

she's showing them where they can hunt,

where they can find water.

[Suman] It's showing these cubs
how to move in the landscape,

how to stay secretive
and not get exposed to the people,

showing how to survive inside the city.

Such a great mother it is, actually.

[narrator] And it's not just tigers
appearing on the remote cameras.

[animal calling]

Bhopal has secret residents
of all shapes and sizes.

Some neighbors can be prickly.

With no respect for privacy.

[growling]

At night, all the animals are on the move

and trying to make it home before sunrise.

Better keep up with mom.

Some are naturally curious...

especially the tiger cubs.

[clattering]

[♪ playful music playing]

[clanking]

Oops.

The cubs will continue to learn
from their mother

until it's time
to find their own territories.

One day, they'll show their own young
how to survive close to a city

and the knowledge will be passed down
through the generations.

I feel like that is
what India is going to need in future,

like, tigers that show adaptations
to living around people.

And she's just showing us
how tigers can do that.

She's the hope for the future.

[animals calling]

[narrator] After five years of filming,

it's time for the Disneynature crew
to pack up and head home.

They leave knowing that
India's tigers are on the rise.

And as they move into human areas,

some tigers are showing how it's possible
to thrive in a world of people.

[Bilal] It's a challenge.

And they're doing it beautifully.

They're doing it in a most amazing manner

to live with humans.

[chattering]

[narrator] And people are
also playing their part

to ensure this unique relationship
lasts into the future.

[Bilal] I think there is always a space
in the heart of the people

to live with tigers,

to share the landscape
with these magnificent carnivores.

[♪ upbeat music playing]