On a pleasant March morning, the Safari jeep transporting us from our resort reached one of the 20-odd gates of the Tadoba Andhari Tiger Reserve at 5.30 a.m. The excitement was understandable, the tension palpable, as we all waited for the gates to be opened at 6 a.m. The briefing by the guides on what to expect and the dos and don’ts in a drive through these forests were lessons to imbibe. Most often, the sole objective of such safaris is being lucky to see the most majestic animal — the tiger — upfront. A good half hour into driving through the deciduous forest, watching the morning birds chirping around, there comes a sudden call to congregate at a possible sighting. The adrenaline flow within us was understandable. The jeep driver revved the engine into top gear and sped as though his life depended on this majestic sighting.
The congregation of excited watchers waiting impatiently while the hush-hush tone of the guides led to a palpable tension briefly disturbing the tranquillity of the forest environment. A good 10 minutes of golden silence led to a brief rustle across a bush of grass and thick vegetation. The excitement amongst all was to be seen to be believed. Were we going to watch one of the most majestic beings grace the turf before us?
God had decided that “she” should make her presence felt. The rustle increased while she moved from her lazing posture to stretch herself. Her eyes fixated and staring into the wide-eyed stunned human chain in front of her. Cameras clicked in unison and at a feverish pace lest she is missed. The silence was briefly marred by choked sighs from the stunned groups. Will she now make her gracious presence before us? The guides were confident, having seen such behaviour during many such awestruck moments.
A few seconds into this stunned gazing, she decided to move away from the bushes and make her way through the thick vegetation. A patient, graceful, and majestic tiger walked straight to us and decided to amble across the dusty path, in between pausing so as to let us have our fill of her sight. As she moved around gingerly, she marked her territory while the shutterbugs feverishly clicked their last bit moments of truth.
She finally strode majestically down the rusty vegetation finally disappearing into the dense bushes never to be seen again. Those 15 minutes of joy is immeasurable while we hope to see more of her in our future escapades to the tiger reserve.
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