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#FriendshipDay2022: When Bollywood celebrated the human-animal bond with some endearing pet-time stories

Pets taking the centrestage in cinema is a common facet in the film industry. Time and again, Hindi film buffs have witnessed a number of stories where the four-legged or winged-friends become the mainstay of films. This Friendship Day, OTTplay takes a look at some of the paw-some and hoove-some stories that tug at your heart, every time you watch!. ,

P Sangeetha

Aug 02, 2022

Stills from Hum Aapke Hain Kaun, Maine Pyar Kiya and Khoon Bhari Maang

What's the most special aspect about friendship? It's beyond all barriers, even including species! Yes, you read that right. This International Friendship Week, we take a peek at a unique kind of friendship - the friendship between human beings and their pets. If you ever felt like bringing home a furry friend after watching a movie, you are not alone. Pets can fill our hearts with their unconditional love. They can play cupid like Tuffy did in Hum Aapke Hain Kaun, turn into a messenger like the pigeon called Handsome in Maine Pyar Kiya or even take a bullet like Jambo in Khoon Bhari Maang to protect their pet parent. Here are a few films that celebrated the unconditonal love between human beings and pets.

777 Charlie (2022)

Dharma is a loner, whose boring and monotonous life changes for the better after a naughty dog enters his life. The film's title is named after the central character, Charlie, a female Labrador. 777 Charlie revolves around how the dog changes Dharma's life and rubs her sprightly personality on the moody Dharma, who eventually decides to mend his ways. The film also throws light on inbreeding and illegal breeders who are tortured.

Haathi Mera Saathi (2021)

This action adventure film directed by Prabhu Solomon, delves into the concept of eco-conservation, especially the protection of elephants. The plot revolves around Bandev (Rana Daggubati), who single handedly fights against encroachment of forest land, which is home to many animals. The film talks about the profound link between humans and animals. It was released in Telugu under the title Aranya and in Tamil as Kaadan.

Junglee (2019)

This action adventure film follows the story of a veterinarian, who when arrives at his father's elephant sanctuary realises that poachers are frequently killing elephants for their tusks. Raj, a city dweller vows to safeguard the elephants, including his childhood elephant friends Bhola and Didi. The film sends across the message of elephant conservation and ends with Did delivering her own elephant calves.

Dil Dhadakne Do (2015)

Ever looked at a family from their pet's point of view? That's what Ayesha Mehra's (Priyanka Chopra) pet dog, Pluto Mehra does. The narrator of the story (in the voice of Aamir Khan), Pluto observes the dysfunctional and rich Mehra family through his eyes and doles out his comments from time to time. He is the sharpest and the most intelligent among the family. If only Pluto could speak to them, he would have solved all their problems easily.

Entertainment (2014)

What happens when a dog is the heir to a property that's worth billions of rupees? A bunch of conniving human folk, who have an eye on the property, try to take his life. But, Entertainment is no normal dog! He not only saves his caretaker, but also goes on to marry his lady love, another adorable dog and has his happily ever after. After all, if you love your pets, they will entertain you for life, right?

Life Of Pi (2012)

Two survivors of a shipwreck are at the centre of the plot of Life of Pi - Suraj Sharma, a teen, and Richard Parker, a Bengal tiger. The duo are trapped in a lifeboat in the Pacific Ocean for 227 days and develop an unusual friendship where each remains dependent on the other, just to survive and stay afloat. The film is an adaptation of the award-winning novel, Life of Pi by Yann Martel and went on to bag many awards.

Chillar Party (2011)

When a local politician announces that all the stray dogs roaming around in Mumbai will be caught and terminated, the entire Chillar Party comprising children at Chandan Nagar Society, decide to save the dogs, especially Bhidu, a friend of Fakta and an integral member of the gang. The film has some emotional scenes where the kids go in search of Bhidu. When they finally break into a smile after their reunion with the lively Bhidu, your heart rejoices.

Teri Meherbaniyan (1985)

Ram and Moti, a Labrador, instantly become friends when the former saves the life of a young Moti. They develop such an unconditional friendship, that when Moti witnesses the brutal murder of his pet parent, he avenges his demise by mauling the murderers to death. He even submits the evidence of Ram's killing to the police. The song Teri Meharbaniyan, dedicated to Moti, is an ode to their friendship.

Safed Haathi (1978)

When Shibu, a young boy, traverses through a dense forest, a ferocious tiger tries to attack him. A huge white elephant emerges and rescues him and Shibu names him Airawat. Soon, they become friends. The white elephant gives Shibu a gold coin. When the Maharaja takes Shibu to the forest and threatens Airavat that he will kill the boy, the mighty elephant surrenders. But, soon Airawat is rescued by all the animals and birds of the forest. The film bagged the National Award for The Best Children's Film.

Haathi Mere Saathi (1971)

Yet another film themed around elephants, Haathi Mere Saathi revolves around the life of Raju, an orphan with four elephants, whom he considers his companions. They reside in Pyar Ki Duniya, a zoo where many animals reside. Their love is so strong that when Raju's wife asks him to pick either her or the elephants, Raju opts for his four-legged friends. As Raju and his wife are about to part ways, the elephant Ramu, whom Raju is extremely close to, reunites them by sacrificing his life.