Opinion Express View | Antigone in UP: Tale of sarus crane and her human friend underlines the unavoidable tragedy inherent in some friendships

It is either cruel irony or prophecy that in Carl Linnaeus’s 18th-century taxonomic classification, the sarus crane — the state bird of Uttar Pradesh — is called Antigone antigone. In ancient Greek tragedian Sophocles’ play, Antigone, the eponymous character defies the king to mourn her brother. When the princess is told that she is breaking the law, she defends her defiance by stating that there are rules more fundamental than the laws of man. But, her pain and eloquence notwithstanding, Antigone meets a tragic end. Centuries later, in UP, a sarus crane and her human friend are the main characters in another tragedy when human-made rules trump affection.

Mohammad Arif of Amethi district in UP, rescued an injured sarus in February 2022, who recovered in a couple of months. But rather than fly away, the crane chose to stay, and the unlikely friendship between man and bird provided much heart-warming content. The sarus, however, is a protected species under the Wildlife Protection Act — as such, the forest department had no choice but to intervene and relocate Arif’s friend, away from his care.

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Laws, no matter how well-meaning, carry the potential for tragic consequences. Wild and exotic animals must be protected from poaching and trafficking — and they are not pets. Yet, at times the oddest of friendships can be the most beautiful. That is why many viewers likely stifled a sob when the young elephant, Raghu, is taken away from his caregivers — parents, really — Bomman and Bellie, in The Elephant Whisperers. The law deals in what it imagines as universals, as it must. But once in a while, the exceptional relationship — between man and animal, or across borders of all kinds — appeals to something fundamental. Therein lies the tragedy of Antigone in ancient Greece and Antigone antigone in today’s UP.