“When father brought home a new wife, he quit his job looking after the elephants. And because there was no money at home I had to drop school. I decided I was going to be a mahout. That way, I could spend my days with the animal I loved. I remember, every time Father entered the jungle with the tourists on elephant safaris, I would run after him. And he would shout at me to return home. I was just a kid and did not understand the dangers of the jungle. But I always longed to spend time with the elephants and walk alongside them in the forest. So it gave me a lot of happiness when I got a job of looking after Sita Kali. She has been with me for 12 years. I think she is the most well-behaved elephant here. She is friendly and she lets people come near her. And because we have spent so much time together, she is like my own child. Every time she becomes sick, the pain of her body becomes the pain of my heart. There is no way for me know how she feels about me, but I have seen her emotions which are identical to the emotions of humans. Sometimes she is lazy and I have to let her be. Sometimes she is so euphoric that she does everything I say with just a quick gesture. But it burns my heart to see her cry every time she is separated from her friends. She must feel how I feel when I am back home on leave, away from her, worrying if she is eating properly or if she is being looked after. You see, our languages are different and we communicate through love. And relationships which are based on true love are always pure, be it with humans or be it with animals.”