Vidicom : Elephant Island : TV documentary on elephants on Sri Lanka : Text

A short way south of India lies Elephant Island: Sri Lanka, home of the world's most dense population of Asian elephants. In the war-ridden countries' tropical rain forests, several hundred working elephants are on duty every day: No machine beats a well-trained elephant when it comes to getting heavy work done in rough territory.

The friendly giants are personalities in their own right. As we travel Elephant Island, we meet some of them and tell their tale.

We visit the world's first elephant orphanage and witness an ancient ritual: In a magical full moon week of August, the old royal town of Kandy is restored to all its former splendour.

When the people of Sri Lanka celebrate their oldest temple procession, the country's most magnificent elephants emerge from the dark of the jungle into the mysterious light of the torches. Splendidly decorated, they parade majestically among a multitude of dancers, accompanied by the hypnotic beats of the temple drums.