North Karnataka’s Panchavati Park Debuts Documentary on Butterfly Conservation

• Chitrapatang: Team Panchavati Launches Its First Wildlife Documentary

Panchavati Butterfly Park, located in Joida taluk of Uttara Kannada district, has unveiled its inaugural wildlife documentary titled Chitrapatang: Song of the Stream. This 17-minute Kannada film highlights the importance of butterfly conservation and offers a glimpse into the vibrant lives of these colorful insects.

Shot entirely at Panchavati Butterfly Park, which lies adjacent to the renowned Kali Tiger Reserve, the documentary underscores the need for establishing more butterfly parks. As the first private butterfly park in North Karnataka, Panchavati was inaugurated in October 2022 by Rajya Sabha member Shantaram Siddi. The park’s unique ecosystem, featuring a stream that flows through it, provides an ideal habitat for butterflies, moths, dragonflies, and other insects.

The Panchavati team announced that Chitrapatang is the first in a planned series of Kannada documentaries. In December, they intend to release a short film focusing on spiders.

“Our goal is to engage with grassroots communities and schoolchildren, particularly those in government and Kannada-medium high schools. We aim to showcase the richness of the flora and fauna that surround us daily. To this end, we plan to screen Chitrapatang in government schools across Joida Taluk, encouraging students to participate in butterfly conservation. As part of a pilot project, we are currently developing a butterfly garden at the government primary school in Kondar village,” said a spokesperson from Panchavati Park.

For a broader audience, the team plans to dub the documentary into English in the coming weeks. The Panchavati project has received support from various wildlife enthusiasts, conservationists, experts, and photographers. The spokesperson also acknowledged the invaluable assistance of the Karnataka Forest Department in completing the short film.

Panchavati Butterfly Park is open year-round to researchers, photographers, and students. Public access is available once a week on Saturdays. For more information, visit panchavatibutterflypark.com.

Watch the short film Chitrapatang on YouTube: Chitrapatang: Song of the Stream.

(Photographs of Panchavati Butterfly Park ( Image Credit: Panchavati Butterfly Park)