Shuddering with chill, I embarked at the crack of dawn in search of the Sher Khans of Bandhavgarh, accompanied by a motley group of 16 photo enthusiasts from Bangalore. It is a truism that it is hard to return from Bandhavgarh, Madhya Pradesh’s National Park, without seeing a tiger. Before heading along the allotted route, we chanted ‘Jai Ganesh, Jai Ganesh,’a fervent prayer in anticipation of a bountiful darshan of the feline beauties.
As we drove through the jungle trail, the winter mist lifted over the towering sal trees and bamboo clusters unraveling the pristine environs. The cries of peacocks and crescendo calls of other exotic birds broke the eerie silence of the morning. The gentle swaying of tall trees along with the fresh air added up to the scenic charm all around me.

Through the dark green thicket and pale yellow grasslands, the jeep traversed different terrain, and we anxiously kept our eyes peeled to see the tiger. Racing down Chakradara, prime tiger turf, we examined the ground for pugmarks and stopped by on hearing the alarm calls of monkeys alerting us that a predator is on the prowl. 

 Ensconced among the scenic Vindhyan and Satpura mountain range, the 448-sq km tract of forest land is named after the ancient fort built on 800m-high cliffs. The dramatic landscape features thick sal forests, rolling grasslands, steep rocky hills with flat grasslands in the valleys below and bamboo groves. It also supports chital, nilgai, wild boar, jackal, gaur, sambar, jungle cats, wild dogs and porcupines as well as myriad species of birds including the stately adjutant stork. The ramparts of the fort shelters vultures, blue rock thrushes and crag martins. Bandhavgarh, is also steeped in history.

Legend has it that it was bequeathed by Lord Rama to his brother. Hence the name Bandhavgarh, ‘brother’s fort’. Surrounded by 32 man-made caves filled with inscriptions, carvings and paintings and images of various avatars of Vishnu, the crumbling fort also has a 32-foot monolithic image of Lord Vishnu reclining on the seven-hooded snake at the base.

 Once the hunting preserve of the erstwhile Maharajas of Rewa, tigers are synonymous with Bandhavgarh National Park which is reputed to have the highest density of tiger population in India. Celebrity tigers too have graced the forests of Bandhavgarh. One of them was Mohan, a white tiger cub captured by the Maharaja of Rewa in 1951.This stuffed tiger stands in the Baghel Museum (in Tala) amid other artifacts belonging to the Maharaja.
Today, almost all the white tigers in the world (all in captivity) trace their lineage to Mohan. Another superstar named Sita made famous by the documentaries of National Geographic and Discovery channels, is the queen mother to most tigers here (18 tigers ). Our guide explained that there are three tigers named B1, B2 and B3 in the Park’s tourist area which have carved out carefully demarcated territories.

 At the Central Point, when we were gulping down steaming cups of chai and bhajias, exchanging notes of sightings, word spread that a tiger has been spotted by the fleet of mahouts. They have been tiger- tracking armed with walkie-talkies and muscling the tiger into a spot so that tourists can see it. We queued up for the Forest Department elephants to trundle us for the ‘Tiger Show.’ After 15 minutes, we mounted a huge male elephant led by ace mahout Kuttappan and were ferried to a spot for an ‘orchestrated darshan’ of the tiger.
The tiger looked bored and a trifle annoyed with three elephants that circled him constantly so that so everyone could go click with their cameras. As he lifted his head just twice, I could not contain my excitement and went on a clicking spree as this was my first sighting of a tiger in the wild.

On the second day, we saw from afar a tigress striding down the jungle path with her four cubs, but could not capture them in our camera. As for other species, we saw jungle cats, wild dogs, spotted deer and sambar. Elephants were conspicuous by their absence.

 In our four-day visit, we had seen eight tigers and photographed four tigers. But the real excitement was our encounter with the 13-year old B2 (senior most tiger in Bandhavgarh) in the grasslands on the third day.  All of a sudden the jungle became vibrant with a cacophony of alarm calls by birds and the distinct hoots of the langur, warning us of a tiger in the vicinity. Our driver, Shashi, stopped the vehicle bang in the middle of the road when our sharp-eyed guide muttered ‘Kuch jhalak hai’. After that there was pandemonium. The noise of curious tourists and rushing jeeps raising dust all around was heard.

 We could see in the distance B2 sauntering through the foliage about ten metres from a jungle road. In anticipation of the tiger emerging out of the tall grass and ascertaining the likely direction of the prey, our guide instructed Shashi to stop the jeep at a spot where the tiger would cross. Oblivious of the gawking fans clicking born free moments, the solitary creature strode across the road exactly at that spot as predicted by our guide, his rich orange and black striped coat glowing as it caught the sun. Then quietly, within seconds, the lord of the jungle retreated into the tall grass beyond probably for a snooze as we gazed speechless.

As I mused over my wildlife safari, the brief, fleeting glimpses of the regal creature remained vividly etched in my mind. It was definitely more satisfying than the orchestrated sightings!!