The 58-year-old jumbo will lead the procession of elephants at the famous 10-day festivities in Mysuru but is racing against time to gain weight.
Mysuru: At 5,650 kg, Arjuna, 58, is a true heavyweight of the celebrated Dussehra celebrations in Mysuru. But for him to fulfil the responsibilities that come with the privilege, Arjuna has to ideally put on another 400 kilos over the next week.
For Arjuna, an Asian elephant, will lead the procession of pachyderms at the famous 10-day festivities in this southern city, which are set to begin on 10 October.
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As the lead elephant, Arjuna will be tasked with carrying the 750-kilo Golden Howdah, the elephant seat made of pure gold that carries the idol of Goddess Chamundeshwari, the family deity of the erstwhile Mysuru maharajas.
The elephants, the centrepiece of the festivities, have already been brought to the Mysuru Palace grounds, where they are on a strict diet and are undergoing a strenuous training regimen.
This year, Arjuna, who took over from his predecessor Balrama in 2012, will be accompanied by Varalakshmi, Vikrama, Chaitra, Balrama, Abhimanyu Gajendra, Gopalaswamy and Gopi.
Two young tuckers, Drona and Dhananjaya, have been identified by forest officials to be a part of the elite team of elephants.
Weighing in
The first thing that Arjun and his team are made to do as soon as they arrive in the city, from the elephant camp in Nagarhole National Park, is to step on the weighing scales. Weight and strength are important aspects of preparing the elephants chosen for the festival.
Arjuna is the first to step on the scales, tipping it at 5,650 kg. His mahout Vinu heaves a sigh of relief as he was worried the elephant may have lost weight.
Last year, Arjuna weighed 5,250 kg, which according to Vinu, made him slightly underweight.
Up next is Chaitra, who weighs in at 2,970 kg. Varalakshmi was considered obese last year when she was 4,970 kg but this time she weighs 3,120 kg.
The others, Dhananjaya (4,045 kg), Vikrama (3,985 kg) and Gopi (4,435 kg) are all deemed fit by Dr Nagaraj, the veterinarian in charge of the elephants.
He says it is important for the elephants to gain weight so that they can withstand the rigorous training for the Dussehra or Dasara (as it is known in Mysuru) celebrations.
Jumbo diet
Dr Nagaraj ensures that the diet is a well-balanced one for Arjuna and his friends. With a special allocation of Rs 20 lakh, the nutritious food is cooked fresh and served once at 5.30 am and then again at 5 pm.
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The diet for each elephant is a healthy mixture of lentils, which include urad dal, green gram, wheat and boiled rice, each weighing 70 kg. Another 70 kg of boiled beetroot, carrot, radish, onions and cucumber is added. Each elephant is also fed a kilo and half of butter to ensure proper nourishment.
Apart from the cooked meal, each elephant is also provided with 450 to 600 kg of banyan leaves, 250 kg of green grass and 50 kg of dry grass with an additional supplement of 35 kg of paddy, jaggery, coconut, groundnut and salt.
Keeping the elephants hydrated is vital and they are provided drinking water thrice, each of them consuming 250 to 300 litres of water a day.
The training
The elephants are subjected to intense training under the watchful eyes of their mahouts and the forest officials. Every day, till the grand finale, the elephants rehearse the 5-km route through the city. Arjuna is particularly weighed down with heavy sandbags equal to the weight he is expected to carry on the final day of the procession.
It takes expertise and precision to even ensure that the weights are placed properly.
One such expert is Akram Pasha who has been doing this for several years. He places a wooden replica of the howdah on Arjuna and knots them in place before the sandbags are put in.
Arjuna had taken over from his predecessor Balrama after the senior elephant had lost his majestic gait and strength.
Balrama lost the title of head elephant after he covered the 5-km stretch, with the howdah, in 135 minutes during test runs; Arjuna covers the same distance in 90 minutes. Balrama, however, is still part of the team and will participate in the procession right behind his successor.