Fishing Cat: The Pride of Bengal
Wildlife Conservation Film Festival
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01-Dec-2023
The fishing cat locally known as ‘Baghrol’ are endangered wild cats which are also the state animal of West Bengal.
Found in the wetland terrains of eastern India, these nocturnal cats are carnivores predators, twice the size of a domestic cats, who mainly prey on fishes. Due to their likeness of appearance to leopard with olive grey fur and black strips as well as the fact that they hunt for fish from ponds and fisheries, that the village folk depend on their livelihood for, a large number of these wild cats are killed by the locals. Further due to wide spared industrialization and the clearing of wetland areas for urban development, the fishing cats are increasingly losing their habitats. This along with other hazards of human intervention like road kill has caused the ‘Baghrol’ to become endangered species.
This film seeks to raise awareness among audiences from all walks of life regarding the endangerment of the ‘Baghrol’. The filmmaker, Kaushik Mukhopadhyay aims for this film to be a voice for the ongoing conservation movement for wetlands as well as the fishing cats.
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