Anamala Kaleem

Anamala Kaleem (c. 1963) is a famous Kumki elephant living in Aanamalai, Tamil Nadu.[1] Kumki means an elephant used to assist in taming of trapped wild elephants for domestication.

After wild elephants are trapped and caught, they need to be trained for domestic use. For this process, already tamed elephants are used, mainly to bring the trapped elephant up from the trap and hold them still for the trainer to do his job.[2] Captured in the early 1970s from the Sathyamangalam forest as a seven-year old, Kaleem is considered to be one of the finest Kumkis of the Asian elephant.[3] Wherever wild elephants stray into human habitation, damage crops and threaten humans, Khaleem is summoned to capture the wild elephants and take it to the elephant camps.[4][5] He has so far completed 60 Kumki operations.[6][7]