Toomai of the Elephants
Toomai of the Elephants is a short story by Rudyard Kipling about a young elephant-handler. It was first published in "St Nicholas Magazine" (December 1893) and reprinted in the collection of Kipling short stories, "The Jungle Book" (1894). The character Petersen Sahib is thought to be modelled on George P. Sanderson (1848–1892). The story was filmed in 1937 as "Elephant Boy" directed by Robert J. Flaherty and Zoltan Korda starring Sabu Dastagir. The story was also produced in 1973 as the TV series "Elephant Boy" starring Esrom Jayasinghe. Plot. Big Toomai, the boss driver of  elephants, takes little pleasure from his work. But his 10-year-old son, Little Toomai, loves the elephants and they understand his kindness. Asking to go on a hunt, his father tells him he can go when he sees the elephants dance, which is something that no man has ever seen an elephant do.