Mumbai: With the singular purpose of celebrating the contribution of the unsung heroes of the wild – the forest guards – Animal Planet will soon premiere a pathbreaking new series titled ‘Heroes of the Wild Frontiers’. The six-part series will take viewers through the lives of the forest guards and the frontline staff manning the vast expanses of India’s forests and national parks, spotlighting their commitment and efforts to protect the biodiversity of India. This series is a part of Animal Planet’s long-term strategy to showcase critical stories that are shaping the wild as part of ‘Animal Planet Presents’. Directed, Narrated and Written by the award-winning filmmaker Krishnendu Bose, the Heroes of The Wild Frontiers will premiere on 16th September at 9 PM, on Animal Planet.
The series will take viewers on an enchanting journey through unusual wild landscapes of India including the Mahatma Gandhi Marine National Park in the Andamans documenting the diversity among the corals and the challenges they face due to climate change. One will get to witness the multilayered work the Forest guards have to do here including underwater and above. In the wilds of the Hemis, for the first time viewers will see the radio collaring operations of the Snow Leopard and also the very rare Lynx. The episode also shows how the guards live and work in these tough terrains sometimes even by putting their lives in danger. In the Kaziranga episode, viewers will get to meet forest guard Shanti Ram Chetri who after 33 years of glorious service, will be seen spearheading an anti-poaching operation on the last day of his service to save a Rhino from being killed!
Shot in some of India’s most beautiful National Parks and Reserves including Kaziranga, Andaman, Sundarbans, Hemis, North Bengal and Pakke, Krishnendu Bose will take viewers on a fascinating journey through wild India – a journey that captures some of the most magical moments from the wilds of India. The laying of eggs by the largest turtle in this world, the Snow Leopard patrolling its territory at 5000 Meters, the crazy run of the Rhinos, the tigers of the Sunderbans and the magical color changing ability of the Cuttlefish are some of the most astounding visuals that one will get to witness apart from the diligent conservational attempts of the forest rangers.
Speaking about the series, Krishnendu Bose, says, “In my personal experience of filming in the Indian forests for more than 25 years, I have seen the critical role played by the Forest guards and other frontline staff. As a tribute to their commitment and their relentless work to protect the biodiversity of India, I have produced the first-ever television series on them. This series tries to capture the challenges they face every day in their work – sometimes putting themselves in life threatening situations, the multilevel responsibilities they fulfill and the meager resources they work with. Along with capturing the lives of the Forest guards, this series also records some rare and some critically endangered fauna of our forests.”
“‘Heroes of The Wild Frontiers’ is an endeavor to introduce the unsung heroes of wildlife conservation – the forest guards. It is in line with Animal Planet’s core philosophy of celebrating extraordinary individuals who are working hard to protect our planet’s wildlife,” said, Sai Abishek, Director – Content, Factual & Lifestyle Entertainment – South Asia, Discovery. “The Forest guards stay away from their families for months on end and put their lives at risk to protect India’s wildlife. We hope our viewers appreciate the effort being put in by these people and get inspired by them to do their bit for our wild heritage as well.”
Heroes of The Wild Frontiers is the story about the challenges these brave forest guards face while they put their life in danger to protect the wildlife of India from poachers, wildfires and natural calamities, making it possible for humans and animals to coexist. To do justice to the hard work of our courageous forest guards, Ashwika Kapur, a young nature filmmaker, will be seen accompanying these forest guards around the major National Parks and Reserves, showcasing the heroic acts of these lion hearts. Heroes of The Wild Frontiers is the culmination of over a year’s dedicated research and production efforts by the team at Earthcare Productions, supported by some of the biggest and most reputed names in conservation including WWF India, Wildlife Trust of India (WTI), Wildlife Conservation Trust and GIZ, a German Development Agency and ONGC. The respective State Forest Departments and the Ministry of Environment Forests and Climate Change provided matching collaborative support to produce this series.
Heroes of The Wild Frontiers will premiere in India on Animal Planet on 16th September 2019 at 9 PM IST.
