Lai Lai the Baby Elephant

Shekar Dattatri's fascination with wildlife began at 13 when he joined the Madras Snake Park as a volunteer. This led to an interest in photography and filmmaking. Several of his award-winning documentaries on wildlife such as Silent Valley, an Indian Rainforest and The Ridley’s Last Stand have been shown around the world. Over the last few years he has been focussing on conservation, and his films on the olive ridley turtle, and mining in Kudremukh, Mindless Mining, have gone a long way in impacting policy. His efforts to raise environmental awareness recently won him Sweden’s Edberg Foundation award. The theme of conservation also runs through his three books with Tulika: Lai-Lai the Baby Elephant, Riddle of the Ridley and Ira the Little Dolphin. Shekar lives in Chennai.