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S44E13

Legendary Tigers of India

Premiere: 4/22/2026 | 0:30 |

The story of the legendary tigers of Ranthambhore Fort told by the man who’s devoted his life to keeping them alive.

Premiere: 4/22/2026
PBS   •   PBS App

About the Episode

In the jungles of northwestern India lies an ancient fort that has stood for more than a thousand years. For centuries, rulers battled over its control. Today, it is home to the most filmed and studied tigers on Earth. This is their story, told by the man who’s devoted his life to keeping them alive.

Ranthambore National Park is known for its spectacular wildlife, specifically its magnificent tigers. Centuries of hunting had driven the tigers into hiding, forcing them to live like ghosts. Then protected by Prime Minister Indira Gandhi’s ban on hunting in the early 1970’s, these tigers have grown from a group of a dozen cats into a clan of more than 70 members.

For the last half-century, one man followed, photographed and filmed them: one of the world’s leading tiger experts, Valmik Thapar. Although Thapar passed away in May 2025, he was able to collate his archive, with the help of friends and family, to tell the definitive story of this tiger dynasty for the first time. Witness rare behavior and unbelievable footage of dramatic and intimate moments between five generations of tiger matriarchs.

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PRODUCTION CREDITS

LEGENDARY TIGERS OF INDIA

IN MEMORY OF
VALMIK THAPAR
1952 – 2025

DIRECTED, PRODUCED AND WRITTEN BY
MIKE BIRKHEAD
BETH JONES

FILM EDITORS
MATT BLANDFORD
NIGEL BUCK
MARC DAVIES
MARK FLETCHER

PRINCIPAL PHOTOGRAPHY
GEORGE WOODCOCK

SOUND RECORDIST
ANDREW YARME

COMPOSER
DAVID MITCHAM

GRAPHICS
LINA KALCHEVA
IDA MELUM

SCIENTIFIC CONSULTANT
DHARMENDRA KHANDAL

COLORISTS
PAUL INGVARRSON
LIAM HUGHES

DUBBING MIXERS
DAVID INGRAM
SAM HODGKINS

SOUND DESIGN
DAVID YAPP

VOICE-OVER RECORDIST
PRADEEP SINGH

FIELD PRODUCER
STEPHEN DORRETT

ASSISTANT PRODUCER
EDO DŽAFIĆ

PRODUCTION MANAGER
CAROLINE AITZETMULLER

LINE PRODUCER
CHERRY DORRETT

BBC COMMISSIONING EDITOR
TOM COVENEY

ARCHIVE
KALYAN VARMA
ADITYA DICKY SINGH
NYRA SINGH
ALAMY
ANISHA HEBLE
SAURABH MISRA
ARCHNA SINGH
BBC MOTION GALLERY
BRITISH PATHÉ
FOREST DEPT. RANTHAMBHORE TIGER RESERVE
GETTY IMAGES
RAMON GONZALES, LATEST SIGHTINGS
MIKE BIRKHEAD ASSOCIATES
BELINDA WRIGHT
SALIM ALI
SUBBIAH NALLAMUTHU
VALMIK THAPAR
FATEH SINGH RATHORE
GUNTER ZIESLER
JAISAL SINGH
JUDITH WAKELAM
TEJBIR SINGH
VIJAY KUMAWAT

SPECIAL THANKS
DEBBIE BANKS EIA
HAMIR THAPAR
SANJNA KAPOOR
THE WILDLIFE CRIME UNIT, METROPOLITAN POLICE SERVICE
TIGER WATCH

ORIGINAL EPISODE PRODUCTION FUNDING PROVIDED IN PART BY
Jérôme and Sophie Seydoux
Arlene and Milton D. Berkman
The Hite Foundation
Bradley L. Goldberg Family Foundation
Perpetual Kindness Foundation
Sun Hill Renewal Fund

ORIGINAL SERIES PRODUCTION FUNDING PROVIDED IN PART BY
Arnhold Foundation
Sue and Edgar Wachenheim III
The Fairweather Foundation
Charles Rosenblum
Kathy Chiao and Ken Hao
Sarah and Sandra Lyu
Lillian Goldman Charitable Trust
Dr. George Stanley and Sandra Caruso
Colin S. Edwards
Kate W. Cassidy Foundation
Filomen M. D’Agostino Foundation
Gregg Peters Monsees Foundation
Koo and Patricia Yuen
Seton J. Melvin
Sandra Atlas Bass

FOR NATURE

SERIES EDITOR
JANET HESS

SENIOR PRODUCER
LAURA METZGER LYNCH

SUPERVISING PRODUCER
JAYNE JUN

ASSOCIATE PRODUCER
JAMES F. BURKE

LEGAL COUNSEL
BLANCHE ROBERTSON

DIGITAL LEAD
DANIELLE BROZA

DIGITAL PRODUCER
AMANDA BLOOM

SOCIAL MEDIA EDITOR
KAREN HO

AUDIENCE ENGAGEMENT
CHELSEY SAATKAMP

BUDGET CONTROLLER
JAYNE LISI

ONLINE EDITOR
STACEY DOUGLASS MOVERLEY

RE-RECORDING MIXER
JON BERMAN

SERIES PRODUCER
BILL MURPHY

EXECUTIVE PRODUCER
FRED KAUFMAN

A MIKE BIRKHEAD ASSOCIATES PRODUCTION FOR THE WNET GROUP IN ASSOCIATION WITH BBC

THIS PROGRAM WAS PRODUCED BY THIRTEEN PRODUCTIONS LLC, WHICH IS SOLELY RESPONSIBLE FOR ITS CONTENT.

© 2026 THIRTEEN PRODUCTIONS LLC AND MIKE BIRKHEAD ASSOCIATES LTD.
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

FUNDING

Support for Nature: Legendary Tigers of India is provided in part by Jérôme and Sophie Seydoux, Arlene and Milton D. Berkman, The Hite Foundation, Bradley L. Goldberg Family Foundation, Perpetual Kindness Foundation and Sun Hill Renewal Fund. Series funding for Nature is made possible in part by The Arnhold Family in memory of Henry and Clarisse Arnhold, Sue and Edgar Wachenheim III, The Fairweather Foundation, Charles Rosenblum, Kathy Chiao and Ken Hao, Sarah and Sandra Lyu in memory of Seung and Dorothy Lyu, Lillian Goldman Charitable Trust, Dr. George Stanley and Sandra Caruso, Colin S. Edwards, Kate W. Cassidy Foundation, Filomen M. D’Agostino Foundation, Gregg Peters Monsees Foundation, Koo and Patricia Yuen, Seton J. Melvin, Sandra Atlas Bass, and public television viewers.

TRANSCRIPT

Over 50 years, five tigers let one filmmaker into their lives.

- I wasn't a scientist or a naturalist, I was simply a filmmaker who fell in love with this place and its wild tigers.

- But there's nothing simple about this story.

What comes next is the tale of an animal dynasty and a new dawn for the tigers of India.