(IN): 'RAAVAN' elephant attack: High profile eyewitness speaks out

Posted August 4, 2009 · August 4, 2009

*Ravi Kissan details gruesome Raavan elephant attack**IndiaFM* | Tuesday,

04 August , 2009, 13:01

The much talked-about elephant attack in the Athirapilly jungles of Kerala

during the shooting of Mani Ratnam's *Raavan*, which left one mauled and

dead, was far more gruesome and perilous than what has been made out to be.

Actor Ravi Kissan, who plays Abhishek Bachchan's elder brother, recounts the

horrific sequence of events. " Aishwarya, Abhishek and I were shooting when

the elephant got annoyed. It attacked the mahout and killed him in the most

gruesome manner. The elephant pierced the mahout's lungs with its tusks. The

tusks went through the lungs and came out from the back of the mahout. Then

the elephant ran around with the mahout's inert body stuck in its tusks in a

frightening display of animal power. It was the most horrifying thing I've

ever seen in my life. "

But there was a rather sobering side to this naked display of Nature's fury.

" Minutes after this brutal killing the elephant realized what it had done

and was crying profusely, " revealed the actor.

All through the violence, Ravi found safety on top of the unit bus which had

brought the crew to the spot. " If I didn't have the presence of mind to

scamper quickly to the top of the bus I'd have definitely been trampled to

death, " added the Bhojpuri superstar.

*Aishwarya and Abhishek's elephant attack

The unit has now scampered quickly to Ooty , terminating abruptly the

shooting in the Athirapilly jungles. Members of the unit are still unsure of

the next move.

One member of the *Raavan* unit, on condition of anonymity, said that the

film's future is challenged. " The budget has shot up to Rs 120 crores. The

entire ambience and language for the Hindi and South Indian versions is

different. To further recover investments the producers have decided to dub

the film in Telugu besides having a proper Hindi-Tamil bi-lingual

two-language release. The catastrophes, illnesses and tensions are

multiplying. And Mani Ratnam is getting progressively stressed out. So we're

all worried about his health. "

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