Posted by on 07th May, 2016.
The jungle is unexpected. In his attempts to tame it, man is at his most vulnerable. There are scores of films about forests bringing out the animal in man – and I do not mean that in a negative way, because man IS an animal, and being in touch with your primitive side always helps.
We make a huge mistake when we imagine being an animal requires us to hunt, eat and procreate. Our bestiality requires us to be in touch with our senses, and every animal has its own language. Thus, when we are a man-beast, we can see the sky, feel the touch of grass beneath our feet, smell wild flowers and taste nectar.
When we are man, we let machines rule us. Whether we are in an urban or physical jungle, man needs endurance and survival skills. Both are ultimately unforgiving.
I call the jungle an easier bet because animal instincts are a weapon here. Man is not necessarily superior, but he is equal to the crowd outside. The forest is cruel, beautiful and uses its own system of rationality. In the Northern Indian forests, everything is glorious and pure. The innocence of the landscape is perfectly complemented by its haunting realities, the muffled roar of the tiger. Every human nerve is one with and at peace with, the simple jungle laws.
If you are scared of the forest, you might as well be scared of life and beauty.