The story is a heart filled and courageous tale with a wonderful message. Why has man become the most dangerous animal? Doesn’t man understand that if the forests and the animals don’t exist, man will cease to exist? Will they save the animal’s home in the forest and will people and animals live together in harmony? Their mission is simple: once in Delhi, they will ask the government some very simple questions. Along the way, they meet a motley crew of jungle friends: the Bee Commander (Cary Elwes), the Pigeon (Christopher Lloyd), the singing Flamingos (Jane Lynch and Jason Alexander), and the hyenas that want a snack, and many more. The journey across the country becomes a journey where enemies become friends and a family comes together to fight for what rightfully belongs to them. One – kidnap Alex the parrot who can speak the language of the humans and so will become the voice of the animals. To reach this impossible achievement they must do two things. A story of how a group of how this disparate group of animals decide to take their petition to the leader of the humans in Delhi… the ministers that work in the parliament. Humans who have only one agenda – clear the forests, kill the animals, and construct multi-story buildings. But his lessons will remain unfinished and end in tragedy. For today is the day that he will learn the importance of tradition from his father Sultan – Leader of the Leopards. For him it is going to be a day that will change his life forever. It is an ordinary day for each of them except Yuvi, the young leopard cub. The animals of Borivali National Park wake up and go about their business as usual. A friend and I were discussing this we agreed it was hard to get the Hindi version voices out of our heads! However, for the purpose of this review, I will stick to looking at this as a Hollywood version of an Indian animated film… with the caveat that sometimes my Bolly-fanness colored my thoughts.ĭelhi Safari is the story of a journey undertaken by a cub leopard Yuvi (Tara Strong), his mother Begam (Vanessa Williams), a monkey Barjrangi (Carlos Alazraqui), Bagga, the lovable bear (Brad Garrett) and Alex the parrot (Tom Kerry) as the forest they live in is on the verge of destruction. Now, first I have to admit that being a Bollywood lover both hindered and added to my enjoyment of this film. It is the Hollywood version, which by the way has been shortlisted for the Oscars for animation, that we are going to take a look at today. I was also excited when I heard that in an unique move, Advani and the producers also made a version with an American cast that includes some of the greats of Hollywood, which included Jason Alexander, Brad Garrett, Vanessa Williams, Jane Lynch, Christopher Lloyd and Cary Elwes – a nice coup. When I heard about that project I was very intrigued, and when I saw the trailers and heard the fab songs by Shankar Ehsaan and Loy and I couldn’t wait to see and hear more about Delhi Safari. The original Hindi film version was voiced by some of the greats of Bollywood, including Boman Irani, Govinda, Akshaye Khanna and Urmilla Matondkar. They decide to take on the builder by going to New Delhi and protest in front of the parliament in the presence of the media.ĭespite the predictable song-and-dance and even the story, Delhi Safari works as the train journey from Mumbai to New Delhi has a few of stops and fun moments that fit well into the plot.Directed and written by Bollywood director Nikhil Advani ( Kal Ho Na Ho, Salaam-E-Ishq), Delhi Safari is his first foray into an animated adventure feature. Thus starts the journey of a leopard, her cub, a monkey, a bear and a parrot for justice. The close proximity to nature obviously comes at the cost of cutting trees and even killing animals. The story that starts at Mumbai's National Park where a builder encroaches in the forest to construct a housing complex, promising homes close to nature. And this is where the medium of cinema does the job best. It also sends an important message of protecting animals, a message many NGOs and government agencies are finding hard to spread.
Kids, who enjoyed the Madagascar series and even Jungle Book, will enjoy Delhi Safari because there are a lot of things in the film they can relate to, like the popular Sanjay Gandhi National Park in Mumbai, names of other Indian cities, Hindi movie dialogues and even the mention of the popular Indian news channels every now and then.ĭelhi Safari, directed by Nikhil Advani is a joy ride that will take you on a fantasy trail from Mumbai to Delhi. Though many Indian studios have tried their hands at animation in the past, Delhi Safari reaches the closest to a good quality 3D animation entertainer. Rohit Khilnani feels Delhi Safari is a must-watch.