[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 speaking]
[narrator] Pooja and Kalyan have spent many days filming one tigress
and have earned her trust.
[Pooja whispering]
[♪ Mellow music playing]
[birds chirping]
[grumbles softly]
[Kalyan speaking]
[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 speaking]
[♪ Slow gentle music playing]
[♪ 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 speaking]
[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]
[cow mooing]
[painter in Hindi]
[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.
[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 speaking]
[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 speaking]
[narrator] Kalyan and Suman have been capturing
close-up shots of tigers using the underpass.
[Suman] Wow.
[narrator] There are now over 200 tiger crossings every year.
[narrator] Pooja has come to help Suman capture footage of a very special tigress.
[Pooja and Suman speaking]
[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.
[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 speaking]
[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 speaking]
[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]
[narrator in English] In charge of operations
is Divisional Forest Officer Alok Pathak.
[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 speaking]
[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 speaking]
[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 speaking]
[narrator] But tragic accidents can occur.
When villagers work late in the forest,
a young inexperienced tiger may mistake them for prey animals.
[Kalyan speaking]
[narrator] In some parts of India, the rise in tiger numbers
is causing a dramatic spike in attacks.
[Pooja speaking]
[♪ 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]
[narrator] 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.
[speaking Hindi]
[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.
[speaking Hindi]
[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]
[speaking Hindi]
[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]
[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 speaks Hindi] - [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 speaks Hindi]
[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]
[speaking Hindi]
[laughter on phone]
[Shital's relative 1 on phone]
[Shital's relative 2 on phone]
[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 speaks Hindi]
[narrator in English] Shital is proud to be one of the few women doing her job.
[Shital speaks Hindi]
[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 speaking]
[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 speaking]
[♪ 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 speaking]
[insects chirping]
[narrator] It was a long wait...
with nothing to show for it.
[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]
[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]
[Ajay in Hindi]
[Ravi in English]
[Ravi in Hindi]
[narrator in English] P2 slips back into the forest.
[Ravi speaking]
[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]
[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.
[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 speaking]
[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 speaking]
[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 speaking]
[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.
[Kalyan speaking]
[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 speaking]
[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.
[grumbles softly]
[Ravi speaking]
[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 speaking]
[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.
-[teacher in Hindi] - [students exclaim]
[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]
[students in Hindi]
[Shital in Hindi]
[Rakesh in Hindi]
[students in Hindi]
[Rakesh in Hindi]
[students in Hindi]
-[Rakesh in Hindi] - [students in English]
[students laughing]
-[Rakesh in Hindi] - [students chatter]
- [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]
[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]
-[students in Hindi] - [Rakesh] Hm?
[students in Hindi]
[indistinct chattering]
[Rakesh in Hindi]
[students in Hindi]
[Rakesh in Hindi]
[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]
[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]
[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]
[♪ Bright music playing]
[indistinct radio chatter]
[narrator] Five years of planning have all come down to this moment.
[♪ 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]
[Bilal speaking]
[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.
[buzzing]
[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 speaking]
[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 speaking]
[growls softly]
[narrator] P2 has a new role,
as an ambassador for tigers.
[♪ mellow music playing]
[Ravi speaking]
[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.
[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]
[villagers in English]
[in Hindi]
[applause, chattering]
[narrator] The story is narrated
in the local language, Marathi,
from the point of view of the tiger.
[narrator in film in Marathi]
[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]
[Pooja in English]
[in Hindi]
[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]
[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]
[indistinct chatter]
[narrator in English] Local guide Arvind now makes a living
from taking tourists on nature walks in the landscape.
[Arvind speaking]
[narrator] A small eco-lodge is also creating jobs for local people.
[in Hindi]
[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 speaking]
[narrator] The more deer,
the more tigers.
In this village, the current rise in tiger numbers is a cause for celebration.
[Arvind in Hindi]
[Bilal in English]
[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.
[Suman and Pooja speaking]
[Pooja] Wow.
[Suman speaking]
- Wow. - Oh, wow.
[chuckles]
[narrator] The urban tigress has four cubs, now aged around five months.
[Suman speaking]
[Pooja] Wow.
[Pooja speaking]
[Suman speaking]
[narrator] Bhopal's tigress is bringing up the next generation of urban tigers.
They're now learning how to be street-smart cubs.
[Pooja speaking]
[Suman speaking]
[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.
[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 speaking]
[chattering]
[narrator] And people are also playing their part
to ensure this unique relationship lasts into the future.
[Bilal speaking]
[♪ Upbeat music playing]