Amitabh Bachchan and NDTV to join forces with WWF and Aircel to save tigers in India

[Guest guest]

*Big B for big cats: Save Our Tigers *

 

Madhur Tankha *26/03/2010* *URL: **

http://www.thehindu.com/2010/03/26/stories/2010032667560400.htm*<http://www.theh\

indu.com/2010/03/26/stories/2010032667560400.htm>

 

*Will lend his face and voice to initiative by NDTV, Aircel *

 

 

*

FOR A CAUSE: Bollywood super star Amitabh Bachchan at the " Save Our Tigers "

campaign press conference in New Delhi on Thursday. *

 

NEW DELHI: Bollywood icon Amitabh Bachchan on Thursday announced that he

would lend his face and voice to the cause of saving the majestic tiger from

becoming extinct.

 

As ambassador of “Save Our Tigers” campaign initiated by NDTV and Aircel,

Mr. Bachchan will use his charisma and popularity to drive home the message

to save the tiger.

 

Country's wealth

 

Mr. Bachchan said the tiger is symbolic of our country's wildlife wealth and

is in danger because of rampant poaching and ineffectiveness of our systems

to stop its killing: “Collective action is the need of the hour. It is for

the government, wildlife experts, the media and the public to come together

and effect a change. It is our responsibility to not only initiate a public

movement but also to ensure that it gains momentum across the nation.”

 

The campaign will enable all stakeholders to take affirmative action for

tiger conservation in each State based on the common agenda. When Mr.

Bachchan received a call from NDTV's Prannoy Roy about the campaign to save

the tiger from extinction, he immediately agreed as the cause concerned “our

nature and environment”.

 

“If my face and voice can be used to impress people about a national cause

then I am all for it. I liked the fact that the electronic media has started

this campaign as its penetration is more. It was important that awareness to

save this beautiful animal was propagated across our country,” added the

senior actor at a press conference in the Capital on Thursday. Describing

the tiger as “our national entity”, Mr. Bachchan said: “We should leave the

tiger alone so that it doesn't feel entrenched. In the coming months if I

can convince even one person about the need to follow this righteous path

then I will be extremely happy. As artistes our faces are used to endorse

products that attract consumers and if they can be converted into a national

cause then I will be the extremely gratified.”

 

Mr. Bachchan, who had flown in from Mumbai to spearhead this campaign, said

he had gone to the NDTV studio to shoot for successive campaigns that will

hopefully be in the market soon.

 

Dr. Roy said when he explained what the campaign was all about, Mr. Bachchan

didn't take a second to give his nod. He is inundated with so many such

requests but he took out a great deal of his time for the tiger campaign.

“Two years ago we were the first ones to draw the attention of citizens and

the government to the rapid decline of tiger population in India. Our

signature campaign ‘Save the Tiger' led to the formation of Special Tiger

Protection Force by the Prime Minister,” he added.

 

WWF India secretary-general and CEO Ravi Singh said the campaign was centred

round creating awareness about the present status of tigers in India. As a

principal issue, the tiger needs all the help that can be focused at this

juncture. A special show anchored by Vikram Chandra will engage all key

stakeholders and tiger experts to voice their opinion on what needs to be

done to protect the tigers. Hard-hitting stories and documentaries on the

threats and issues concerning the survival of tigers will be aired. There

will also be a live non-stop programming for a day disseminating facts about

tigers with the objective of creating a public outcry and help raise funds

to protect the tigers from disappearing from their traditional homeland.