Skip to content
Search AI Powered

Latest Stories

The Elephant Whisperers: Director dedicates Oscar to 'motherland India'

It is produced by Monga and Achin Jain of Sikhya Entertainment.

The Elephant Whisperers: Director dedicates Oscar to 'motherland India'

Directed by debutante Kartiki Gonsalves, Tamil documentary The Elephant Whisperers created history at the 95th Academy Awards by becoming the maiden Indian production to win in the Documentary Short Subject category.

"I stand here today to speak for the sacred bond between us and our natural world, for the respect of indigenous communities, and empathy towards other living beings we share space with, and finally, for coexistence," Gonsalves said in her acceptance speech.


The director went on to thank the Academy, producer Guneet Monga, her family and dedicated the win to her "motherland India".

"Thank you to the Academy for recognising our film, highlighting indigenous people and animals.. To Netflix for believing in the power of this... To Bomman and Belli for sharing their sacred tribal wisdom to Guneet, my producer...

"My mentor and my entire team and finally, to my mother, father and sister who are up there somewhere and you are the centre of my universe, to my motherland India," she added.

“The Elephant Whisperers", in its 39-minute runtime, depicts an unbreakable bond between two abandoned elephant calves Raghu and Amu and their caretakers, Bomman and Belli. It is produced by Monga and Achin Jain of Sikhya Entertainment.

Monga didn't say anything on stage but struck an exultant pose lifting the coveted golden statuette high up in the air.

Moments later in an Instagram post, she described the Tamil documentary's win as a moment of glory for India with "two women".

“Tonight is historic as this is the first ever Oscar for an Indian production. India’s Glory with 2 women. Thank you Mom Dad Guruji Shukrana. To my Co-Producer Achin Jain, Team Sikhya, Netflix, Aloke, Sarafina, WME Bash Sanjana.

"My lovely Husband Sunny. Happy 3 months anniversary baby! Kartiki for bringing & weaving this story. To all the women watching…. The future is audacious and the future is here. Let’s go! Jai hind,” Monga wrote in her post.

Earlier, two India-set titles backed by foreign productions - "Smile Pinki" and "Period. End Of Sentence", won Oscars in the Documentary Short category. Monga was the executive producer on 2018's “Period”.

More For You

uk-snow-getty

People drive their cars past a landscape covered in snow and along the Snake pass road, in the Peak district, northern England. (Photo: Getty Images)

UK records coldest January night in 15 years at -17.3 degrees Celsius

THE UK recorded its coldest January night in 15 years as temperatures dropped to -17.3 degrees Celsius in Altnaharra, Sutherland, by 9 pm on Friday.

This is the lowest January temperature since 2010, when Altnaharra hit -22.3 degrees Celsius on 8 January, The Guardian reported.

Keep ReadingShow less
Veteran journalist Vallabh Kaviraj passes away

Vallabh Kaviraj

Veteran journalist Vallabh Kaviraj passes away

Sudha Kaviraj

MY FATHER, Vallabh Kaviraj, (born March 3, 1932), who passed away at 92 on December 26, 2024, was a pioneering journalist who founded the newspaper, Asian Express, in 1973.

Vallabh was passionate and dedicated to serving the growing Asian community by giving a voice to the group.

Keep ReadingShow less
Chandra Arya

Arya, who represents Nepean in Ottawa and was born in India's Karnataka, made the announcement on X. (Photo: X/@AryaCanada)

Liberal MP Chandra Arya declares bid for prime minister of Canada

CANADA’s Asian MP Chandra Arya has announced his candidacy for the prime ministership, just hours before the Liberal Party confirmed that its next leader will be selected on 9 March.

Arya’s announcement comes days after prime minister Justin Trudeau declared his decision to step down while continuing in office until a new leader is chosen.

Keep ReadingShow less
brain-structures-at-birth-getty

Researchers from the University of Cambridge, UK, examined brain scans of over 500 newborns—236 girls and 278 boys—aged between 0 and 28 days. (Representational image: iStock)

Girls have more grey matter, boys more white matter at birth: Study

A NEW study has found that newborn girls and boys have distinct brain structures at birth. While boys tend to have larger brains with more white matter, girls have significantly more grey matter, which is linked to learning, speech, and cognition.

Published in the journal Biology of Sex Differences, the study suggests these differences may result from biological sex-specific development in the womb.

Keep ReadingShow less
Essar-Oil-UK-Getty

Essar Oil UK is advancing decarbonization at its Stanlow Refinery with two key projects supported by Industrial Energy Transformation Fund (IETF) grants. (Photo: Getty Images)

Essar, 24 other firms get £51.9m to cut industrial carbon emissions

THE GOVERNMENT has allocated £51.9 million to support 25 businesses in reducing carbon emissions as part of the Plan for Change aimed at driving economic growth and rebuilding Britain.

The funding covers projects across various industries, including food manufacturing, cement production, and glass processing.
Companies receiving funding include Essar Oil UK, Nestlé's coffee processing site in Staffordshire, Heinz's baked bean factory in Wigan, and Hanson Cement in North Wales.

Keep ReadingShow less