As war rages, Indian doctor won’t leave without his two big cats
Like many other Indians, Kumar Bandi went to Ukraine to study medicine, 15 years ago.
But unlike most of them, he stayed on and made a life in the Donbas region of the country.
When Russian forces invaded Ukraine in late February, he did not join those fleeing.
He refused to leave his pets, two big cats.
As bullets and bombs wrecked life all around, he moved into the basement of his house, with his leopard and his black panther.
Bandi has put up videos on YouTube in his mother tongue, Telugu.
The movie fan has also appeared in some screen roles.
He was always a pet lover, and initially, like most others, he kept dogs and cats.
His interest in big cats began after watching a Telugu movie in which the hero had a cheetah, the Times of India reported.
He has been interviewed by other Indian media outlets too, and even a political leader has spoken to him.
His family in Andhra Pradesh state has appealed for him to return to India, but it is unclear how care can be arranged for two big cats in a war zone.
Elsewhere in Ukraine, there have been initiatives to care for animals caught in the conflict.
While he was not leaving, Bandi said he had been helping to evacuate others.
Many foreigners in the region have fled. But some are staying to fight.
In India, many people have volunteered to fight for Ukraine.
In its latest issue, tabla! also had a report about an Indian aerospace engineering student in the Ukrainian city of Kharkiv, who had joined a voluntary force there.
Sainikhesh Ravichandran, 21, had earlier been interested in joining the Indian army, but did not meet a height requirement.
His parents in Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu, said he could not be contacted, and they had approached the Indian authorities for help.
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