Oscars 2023: India’s ‘The Elephant Whisperers’ wins Best Documentary Short Award

Kartiki Gonsalves and Guneet Monga win the Oscar for Best Documentary Short Subject for “The Elephant Whisperers” during the Oscars show at the 95th Academy Awards in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, U.S., March 12, 2023
| Photo Credit: Carlos Barria

Indian documentary The Elephant Whisperers bagged the Best Documentary Short Award on Monday morning at the ongoing 95th Academy Awards. This makes it the third Indian title to win under the category, after Period. End of Sentence and Smile Pinki

The Netflix documentary bested Haulout, How Do You Measure a Year?, The Martha Mitchell Effect and Stranger at the Gate to win the trophy.

Directed by Kartiki Gonsalves, the documentary competed alongside four other films in the category–  Haulout,  How Do You Measure a Year?,  The Martha Mitchell Effect and  Stranger at the Gate.

While receiving the award, Kartiki said, “I stand here today to speak for the sacred bond between us and our natural world, for the respect of indigenous communities, and empathy towards other living beings we share space with and finally, for coexistence,” Gonsalves said in her acceptance speech.”

She then thanked the Academy, the producer of the short, Guneet Monga, and her family before dedicating the win to her “motherland India”.

“Thank you to the Academy for recognising our film, highlighting indigenous people and animals. To Netflix for believing in the power of this. To Bomman and Belli for sharing their sacred tribal wisdom. To Guneet, my producer. To my entire team and finally, to my mother, father and sister who are up there somewhere and you are the centre of my universe, to my motherland India,” she said.

The Elephant Whisperers depicts an unbreakable bond between two abandoned elephants and their caretakers. It is produced by Guneet Monga and Achin Jain of Sikhya Entertainment.

Meanwhile, India’s nomination for the Best Documentary Feature, All That Breathes, lost the award to Navalny.