Oscar-winning director Ang Lee' s new epic "Life of Pi" reveals the relationship between a teenage Indian boy and a Bengal tiger. But in reality, the predators are under increasing threat from humans. Animal rights group PETA is hoping to use the popularity of the film to focus people's attention on the real life of Bengal tigers. With the rising demand for tiger parts from East Asia, illegal hunting remains a tremendous danger for the remaining cat population. Back in 1947, there were 40,000 tigers in India, but the number is experiencing a sharp decline t0 1,706 despite campaigns to protect the animal. Rising man-animal conflict is also one of the leading causes of decline in tiger numbers. In one of numerous reported attacks on the endangered big cats, villagers near The Bangladesh-India border, armed with sticks and boat oars, set upon the animal suspected to have attacked a local fisherman and beat it to death earlier this month. So far this year, 58 tiger deaths have been reported in the country. "The first instinct when a tiger is spotted is to just kill it,"grieved Gurmeet Sapal, a wildlife filmmaker. "The feeling of fear and revenge is so strong that it shuts out any other emotion. What we don' t realize is that the tiger never attacks humans until it is forced to. "' India has been struggling to stop the tiger's decline in the face of the loss of habitat as well that encourages the animals to leave the forest for food. " The tiger's rapidly exhausted prey base causes the predator to go al! out to get its food. Consequently, livestock and human beings become easy prey, which leads inevitably to conflict," says a wildlife conservationist. Filmmaker Sapal says it is only normal for people to think of the tiger as a dangerous animal, but its image as a human killer bears some injustice. "Tigers never kill for sport nor store meat. They kill their prey only in case of hunger. " Why did the villagers beat the tiger to death?
Because it was a human killer and attempted to attack people. Because it was suspected to be a threat to local people' s lives. Because local people just followed their instinct to kill it. Because people wanted to carry out their revenge for it.