n the village of Ayyalur, pregnant women scream and run when they hear the mere mention of the kadupapa. Myths, superstitions and the constant threat of poaching have made the species dangerously low in parts of Tamil Nadu and Kerala. The creature known as Slender Lories are native to the Eastern Ghats and parts of Sri Lanka. Biju Pankaj, who workes with Malayalam daily Mathrubhumi, came across legends of the creature while on wildlife assignments and was intrigued to bits. Released in 2018, the documentary Mayum Munpe (Before it Vanishes) is his attempt to capture the story of how a peaceful animal has been demonised and hunted over time.
While the number of Slender Lories are dwindling to dangerously few numbers, they still do not enjoy their name on the endangered species status. Cases are currently pending in courts across Madurai and Tamil Nadu to get them listed but an absence of reliable information and statistics have made it virtually impossible. Through the film, Pankaj tries to outline the various reasons that make it imperative to have them classified as an endangered species and protected immediately.
“The superstitions surrounding the Slender Lories are the greatest threat to their survival,” says Pankaj, adding, “This village in Dindigul and Tumakuru in Karnataka are the hotspots for these creatures. They are seen as bad omens and killed on sight. There are myths that perpetrate lies that say that their eyes have medicinal properties, which makes them prey for poachers. We got in touch with organisations like SEED, run by the Gandhigram Rural Institute in Dindigul and various individuals who work towards protecting the species by informing the locals.”
A journalist and documentary director with over 21 years of experience, Biju Pankaj explains that the greatest struggle during the filmmaking process was capturing the Slender Lories on film. These nocturnal creatures who sleep tightly hugging each other during the day needed to be approached carefully in the nights taking care that the light does not hurt or damage their eyes. He made the film with Cameraman PS Venu and Anoop David who was the Editor.
Camera: Sony PMW-200 XDCAM
On Mon, Sep 16, 2019 at 5:18 PM azmia riaz
Saving the Slender Lories
Azmia Riaz speaks to Biju Pankaj about documenting the Slender Lories, a harmless creature on the verge of extinction due to myths
In the village of Ayyalur, pregnant women scream and run when they hear the mere mention of the kadupapa. The creature known as Slender Lories are native to the Eastern Ghats and parts of Sri Lanka. Biju Pankaj, Regional Editor of the Mathrubhumi, came across legends of the creature on wildlife assignments. Myths, superstitions and the constant threat of poaching have made the species dangerously low in parts of Tamil Nadu and Kerala. The documentary Mayum Munpe (Before it Vanishes) is his attempt to capture the story of how an peaceful animal has been demonised and hunted over time.
While the number of Slender Lories are growing dangerously few in numbers, they still do not enjoy their name on the endangered species status. Cases are currently pending in courts across Madurai and Tamil Nadu to mark them as the same but an absence of reliable have made it virtually impossible. Through the film, Pankaj tries to outline the various reasons that make it imperative to have them classified as an endangered species and protected immediately.
“The superstitions surrounding the Slender Lories are the greatest threat to their survival,” says Pankaj, adding, “This village in Dindigul and Tumakkuru in Karnataka are the hotspots for these creatures. They are seen as bad omens and killed on sight. There are myths that perpetrate lies that say that their eyes have medicinal properties, which makes them a huge prey for poaching activities as well. We got in touch with organisations like SEED run by Dindigul Gandhigram university and various individuals who work towards protecting the species by informing the locals.”
A journalist and documentary director with over 21 years of experience, Biju Pankaj explains that the greatest struggle during the filmmaking process was capturing the Slender Lories. These nocturnal creatures who sleep tightly hugging each other during the day needed to be approached carefully in the nights taking care that the light does not hurt or damage their eyes. He made the film with Cameraman PS Venu and Anoop David who was the Editor.