Bellie is an Indian mahout, who works with the Tamil Nadu Forest Department. She made headlines in March 2023 after the short documentary film The Elephant Whisperers (2022) in which she appeared with her husband, Bomman, won an Oscar.
Wiki/Biography
Bellie Amma was born in 1973 (age 50; in 2023) in Mudumalai, Nilgiris district, Tamil Nadu, India.
Physical appearance
Hair Color: Salt and Pepper
Eye Color: Dark Brown
Family
Bellie was born into a Hindu family belonging to the Kattunayakan tribe in Tamil Nadu. Kattunayakan belongs to the category of Scheduled Tribes of India (SIT).
Parents & Siblings
Not much information is available about his parents and siblings.
Husband & Son
Bellie’s first husband died after he was attacked by a tiger. Her second husband, Bomman, a mahout, works with the Tamil Nadu Forest Department. Bellie married him in the late 2000s.
Photo of Bomman and Bellie together
Bellie has a son and a daughter. His son died during the shooting of The Elephant Whisperers. Her daughter, from her first husband, died in a local hospital after she set herself on fire.
religion
Bellie is a Hindu.
Address
He lives in Theppakadu Elephant Camp, Nilgiris district, Tamil Nadu-643223, India.
Career
Mahout
After the death of her first husband, Bellie took a job in the Tamil Nadu Forest Department to help while Bomman took care of the rescued elephants. In May 2017, she started working as a caretaker for Raghu, a 3-month-old baby elephant, after he was rescued by Bomman. In June 2019, he was appointed as the caretaker of Bommi (aka Ammu), a baby elephant. In 2023, Bomman, in an interview, said that she was working as a maid in the forest department officer’s residence at Theppakadu Elephant Camp.
Photo of Bellie with Bommi and Raghu
The Elephant Whisperers
In 2017, Kartiki Gonsalves and Guneet Monga, director and producer of The Elephant Whisperers, approached Bomman and Bellie to cast them, along with Raghu and Bommi, in their short documentary film. The production of the film was completed in 2022, and it premiered on Netflix on December 8, 2022. On March 13, 2023, the film received an Oscar. While talking about the Oscar winning film, Bellie said,
The fact that my documentary, My Story, won an Oscar has made everyone at Mudumalai Tiger Reserve happy. The Adivasi (indigenous people) and the forest department are equally happy. No one has taken any action like this to recognize the Adivasi (indigenous) efforts of Mudumalai. We are all isolated in the Mudumalai forest, with no access to the outside world. We got this far because I took care of the two baby elephants.”
Bellie with her husband Bomman in a still from The Elephant Whisperers
In April 2023, Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited Theppakadu Elephant Camp, where he met Bomman, Bellie, Raghu, and Bommi.
Photo of Prime Minister Narendra Modi with Bomman and Bellie
On 9 May 2023, Bomman and Bellie and The Elephant Whisperers director Kartiki Gonsalves visited the MA Chidambaram Stadium at Chepauk in Chennai, where MS Dhoni presented them with personalized jerseys.
Chennai Super Kings captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni presented the jerseys to Bomman and Bellie on 9 May 2023
Controversy
Legal notice to filmmaker Kartiki Gonsalves
In August 2023, Bomman and Bellie issued a legal notice to filmmaker Kartiki Gonsalves, demanding a ‘goodwill gesture’ of Rs. 2 crores. The legal notice was issued by Pravin Raj, a Chennai-based social activist who is also a lawyer. In an interview, Raj spoke about this and said,
Both Bomman and Bellie were upset with Gonsalves, who had promised them financial help as well as help with Bellie’s grandson’s education, while making the film. But he is now refusing to give away even a fraction of the huge profits made by the film.”
Categories: Biography
Source: SCHOOL TRANG DAI
