The tales among the trees

Gopinatham is a quaint little hamlet in Karnataka’s Chamarajanagar district. It once became famous as the birthplace of forest brigand Koose Munisamy Veerappan. 

Veerappan gained global attention after he abducted veteran Kannada actor Dr Rajkumar from his farmhouse on July 30, 2000. 

Today, it has become a popular tourist spot. It was to experience this legacy that we aimed to visit Gopinatham. 

Gopinatham still bears witness to the haunting influence of Veerappan, even to this day. The trees bear bullet scars, and the forests are still recovering from the wounds inflicted by poachers. 

We even saw Veerappan’s ancestral abode, along with memorials honouring the slain IFS officer P Srinivas.

Months ago, we traversed the forests in the B R Hills, where the brigand once roamed free. We booked a stay at the Gopinatham Mystery Trail Camp, set up by Jungle Lodges and Resorts. It offers jungle safaris, nature walks and coracle rides.

Fascinating stories

My family and I listened in awe as the Soligas, a tribal community that inhabits the B R hill range, shared chilling tales detailing the height of the Veerappan infamy. Having had their lives disrupted by the perpetual clashes between the brigand and the Special Task Force (STF), they have finally found peace. 

Our interest in Veerappan’s origins and the starting point of his violent exploits grew as we learned about his history as a teenager. Our first link to Veerappan was Bhupalan, a close relative of the brigand who works at the camp. Bhupalan entertained us with exciting stories, like how the brigand and his gang stowed away food grains inside a used car tube and buried them deep in the woods. The gang would identify a marker to dig out the contents for use later. Local herders ferried meals for Veerappan and his group when they ran out of rations. 

They even used wood that emitted no smoke for cooking and heating, and rubbed the leaves of a tree on their skin to ward off mosquitoes. Having grown up in the woods, Veerappan knew the forests like the back of his hand. He could imitate the calls of the birds and animals in the jungle. 

No trip to Gopinatham is complete without discovering the legacy of the late IFS officer, P Srinivas. He built a temple dedicated to Mariyamma and embarked on an ambitious tribal housing programme, building 40 houses for people without homes, sometimes using his salary and borrowed money. The temple still performs the first pooja to the photograph of Srinivas at the shrine.

It is said that Veerappan grew envious of Srinivas’ rising popularity among the villagers and devised a plan to eliminate him. He claimed he would surrender if Srinivas arrived unarmed. Srinivas was lured into the trap and ventured into the woods, only to meet his demise at the hands of the brigand. 

Srinivas was posthumously awarded the Kirti Chakra, country’s second-highest peacetime gallantry award, on January 26, 1992, for his service. Srinivas’ photograph adorns the walls of every house in Gopinatham, and a bust of him adorns the Jungle Lodges camp office there.

The Forest Department has restored the jeep Srinivas used during his operations targeting Veerappan in Kollegal, Chamarajanagar and Tamil Nadu forests. The souvenir jeep now graces the museum at the office of the Deputy Conservator of Forests in Kollegal taluk.

Over 30 years have passed since Srinivas lost his life, and almost 20 years have gone by since Veerappan lost his. However, the people of Gopinatham continue to remember them, albeit for varying reasons. It is still common in Gopinatham to name children after the duo.

Memorials at different spots in Gopinatham dedicated to IFS officer Srinivas.

Memorials at different spots in Gopinatham dedicated to IFS officer P Srinivas. Photos by author