Meet the celebrity tigers of Indian jungles

Prince, Bandipur National Park​

Behind the name: Like with royal lineages, he’s called Prince after his late father Agastya, who was   the most famous male of this park in Karnataka and was considered the ‘King of Bandipur’.

Claim to fame: Wildlifers who saw his aggression at age four were convinced he would continue his father’s legacy. Now at 10, he’s one of Bandipur’s most dominant males and roams around freely in his area of 80 sq km; an average tiger’s territory is 30 sq km. This means there’s always a possibility of spotting him at Bandipur, which has about 137 tigers, of which 17 (including him) are in the tourism zone. In fact, he has been such a crowd puller that photographers compare Prince with Bandhavgarh’s iconic tiger, Charger, known to attract tourists in throngs. In recent times, his son, Basannakatte Male has taken over part of his area.

Machli, Ranthambore National Park

Behind the name: Machli didn’t get her name because she swims like fish—some say she was named so after her mother (Machli) and another version documented on wildlife photographer Aditya Singh’s blog indicates that cinematographer Colin Stafford-Johnson, who has shot five documentaries on her, named her so on noticing an “angel fish” mark on her left cheek.  

Claim to fame: Generally tiger reserves make tigers famous, but in Machli’s case it’s the other way around. One of India’s most photographed tigresses hailing from Rajasthan, she shot to fame as she’s great with the paparazzi and very comfortable  in front of the camera. One guide recalls, “She would come so close to the gypsy, you could click a selfie with her!” Tourist flock to watch her from far and wide. Guides say she’s the reason Ranthambore became special. 
They revere her as the vaahan of goddess Durga. 

Also a ferocious warrior, in an epic battle she killed a 14-foot crocodile, turning it upside down and  fueled her legend further. The footage captured by a guide made ripples across the world and is still one of the most watched on YouTube with over 54 lakh views. 

At 19, she’s one of the oldest living tigresses in the wild. Even past her prime, having lost her canines, the gorgeous ‘cat-walk’ and with it the lightning speed with which she would hunt she remains the undisputed Queen of Ranthambore; officials say almost half the park’s tigers belong to her lineage. 

Easily one of the most famous tigresses across globe, there are numerous Facebook pages, short films and documentaries and a postage stamp dedicated to her. As she nears her end—most tigers live for 15-18 years and stronger tigers have managed to push her out of territories in recent years—guides and a special team of the forest department keep a watch on her. There are plans to preserve her carcass taxidermically, so her love story with Ranthambore lives on even after her pug marks disappear. 

Photo by Sarosh Lodhi

Munna, Kanha National Park

Behind the name: Madhya Pradesh’s Munna got his name as a result of banter between guides who saw him limping after a territorial fight that injured his hind foot. It reminded them of one of their peers, who used to walk with a limp as he was affected by polio. Ever since, says a senior guide, the name has stuck on. While the guide was furious at first, given the popularity of the tiger now he surely doesn’t mind.

Claim to fame: The rockstar or SRK of Kanha, as he is often referred to, the dominant male has never had to work too hard to woo the ‘ladies’.  He attained stardom because the stripes on his forehead seem to create the word ‘CAT’.  Tourists, wildlifers and photographers have loved him so, that he’s easily one of India’s most photographed male tigers. 
Back in the days, he was a shrewd hunter. He would crouch low, wait patiently and then seize his prey using all his might. Infact, he was known to defend his territories by sometimes severely injuring other tigers himself. Today stronger, young tigers have pushed the 15-year ‘old man’ out of the very same territories forcing him to move from the core areas to the buffer zones in search of easy prey like cattle. Wildlifers  worry this may anger locals, who might poison or kill him; so they’ve sent letters to  forest officials requesting them to keep track of his whereabouts. Guides hope his son, Chotta Munna, will continue his legacy.

photo by - Sreevardhan Garlapati

Collarwali, Pench National Park 

Behind the name: This seductress living in the Madhya Pradesh side of Pench National Park came to be known as Collarwali in 2008 when the forest department put a radio collar around her neck to study her behaviour; subjects for such studies are selected at random, so little did they know then she’ll go on to become a luminary.

Claim to fame: Also called the ‘Princess of Pench’ by virtue of being the daughter of Badi Maada, considered the park’s queen, Collarwali was much loved since childhood. Unlike her elusive (and now deceased) sister Baaginaala, Collarwali took to tourists as a cub, when the park conducted the now-discontinued elephant safaris, which allowed people to see tigers from a close range. While Baaginala would run away from the camera, Collarwali was happy to be part of several documentaries and has made the centre of the park her home. But the 13-year-old is the pride of the park because she brought it back to life between 2008 and 2015 by giving it a litter 22 cubs of which 18 have survived. Most tigresses give birth to about seven in their lifetime. 
She’s still a photographers delight—she comes out of the meadows along with her cubs and even sits on the mud track, enabling enthusiasts to observe the family behaviour and return with stunning images. Wildlifer Sandeep Singh shares, “Collarwali’s cubs too have taken after her; they enjoy the attention of tourists, while Baaginaala’s cubs, like her, remain elusive.”

Photo by Amol Bias

Maya and Scarface, Tadoba-Andhari Tiger Reserve 

Behind the name: Known to have been mates once, Maya and Scarface are Tadoba’s ‘Beauty’ and ‘Beast’. 7-year-old Maya’s enchanting looks, grace and elegance that leave tigers and humans smitten, may have inspired her name. On the other hand, the story behind her 13-year-old beastly ex-mate’s name has two versions—one goes that the ugly scar on his face was a result of a territorial fight with a dominant male, while another suggests it occured while bringing down a massive gaur, whose horn also left him with limited sight in the right eye. He can only open it partially. 

Claim to fame: While the image of Maya’s cub hugging her supercharged her fame worldwide and made her Tadoba’s poster girl, Scarface’s popularity has to do with his sheer size. His weight is estimated to be on the higher side of the 180 – 250 kg range that most tigers fall in. Locals claim he’s India’s heaviest tiger and lovingly him ‘The Hulk’. His original name was Waghdoh, after the area he lives in. 

He’s considered “very lazy” as he often relishes the hunt brought by females for the cubs, but is known to be protective. Wildlife photographer Sarosh Lodhi, a Tadoba regular, says “He closely guards his females and cubs from other males and is also seen playing with the little ones.”
Maya’s picture with her cubs will soon be released as a postage stamp by the Maharashtra government. But she deserted them in June (most likely in a bid to protect them) and has been spotted mating with other tigers. The whereabouts of the cubs is still unknown.

Photo by Vinit Arora

Jai, Umred Karhandla Sanctuary

Behind the name: In complete Bollywood style the guides of Navegaon-Nagzira Tiger Reserve who saw him with his brother, named him Jai and his sibling (believed to be younger) Viru.

Claim to fame: The 250-kg, 6-year-old Jai not only gives Tadoba’s’ Scarface  tough competition in the biggest tiger category, but in 2013 he walked about 150km crossing highways, rivers and various terrains from Nagzira to Umred Karhandla Sanctuary, where he has shifted. And he lives like a king. Wildlife photographers extensively following him claim he doesn’t go as per the concept of territories and behaves as if wherever he sets foot, is his place. Forest officers and guides say he’s aggressive and a true alpha male with a reputation of killing cattle, angering villagers.

He went missing in April. While researchers, who put a radio collar around his neck believe it may have malfunctioned making it difficult to trace him, forest officials speculate that other male tigers may have chased him away and he will soon emerge. Meanwhile, 10 NGOs along with guides and gypsy drivers from Umred Karhandla have even initiated a ‘Finding Jai’ campaign. CLaW will reward the person who finds him `50K.  

Mystery Male, Bandhavgarh

Behind the name: Born to famous parents Bamera Male and tigress Kankatti, the 5-year-old was originally named Bamera Son after his father, but is now called Mystery Male because of how he reappeared after everyone thought he was dead.

Claim to fame: Besides being a star kid, Mytery Male’s ‘filmi’ story full of new twists triggered his popularity. In 2012, another male entered his family’s territory and killed his cub sisters. But as male tigers only kill male cubs, at first everyone assumed he and one of his sisters had been killed and the cub remaining with Kankatti was a girl. But later officials realised otherwise. He stayed with his mother till 2013 and then took off to some hilly terrain. When he didn’t return for a year, it was rumoured he hadn’t survived, until he was spotted again in 2014.
Currently seen in the Magdi zone, he’s yet to mark his territory, but guides believe he’ll be one of the park’s most dominant males. “He means business” they say, and claim he’s now as popular as Charger, ‘Bandhavgarh’s most famous tiger’.