Monkey Thieves
Encyclopedia
Monkey Thieves, also known as Rebel Monkeys, is a documentary series produced by National Geographic, examining the habits and social interactions of Rhesus Macaque
s in the city of Jaipur
, in northwestern India
. Monkey Thieves follows a family of urban macaques within Jaipur's 'Pink City' and all the drama that comes from living in close proximity to humans. The series tells the story of the "Galta Gang," a sixty-strong troop that lives in the Galta Temple, a beautiful Hindu
temple on the outskirts of Jaipur. This enduring and entertaining bunch live in luxury because worshipers believe they personify Hanuman
, the cherished 'Monkey God' who banished evil in the Indian epic Ramayana
. Defending their prized home from invaders including neighboring langur monkeys and other troops of Macaques, as well as exploring Jaipur in search of food and adventure keeps this remarkable troop in action.
rains fail to appear as scheduled a drought threatens already limited food resources, and the city's population is forced to choose between their own families and the Galta Gang. Fewer people willing to hand out food to the macaques at the temple means empty bellies, forcing Tarak to leave their precious temple home unguarded as he leads his family into the city in search of feeding opportunities. Their ambitious neighbors the langur monkeys try to steal ownership of the ancient temple but the Galta Gang returns, launching into battle and forcing the langurs to flee. Life for the Galta Gang is full of surprises. Zamir and his new troop launch a takeover bid for the temple but the Galta Gang holds them off as well. Zamir is eventually captured by the city's 'Monkey Catcher' and relocated 70 miles away. Tarak, the long-term alpha male of the Galta Gang, dies from wounds he sustains during the battle with Zamir's troop. Rani, the queen of the troop also disappears, turning up days later with her newest baby at her breast. With their king gone and Zamir no longer a threat, Kamal, Tarak's second in command takes over leadership of the Galta Gang.
Season two of the series rejoins the Galta Gang several months after the death of Tarak. Kamal, the new alpha male, does not have the skills necessary to lead the troop. But there's an even greater concern. The Galta Gang's population has reached over 80 members. Macaque troops usually undergo a process known as fission when their number approach this level. Lower class members including featured teenagers Bipin, Yash and Tito, plus as many as 40 others, splinter away from the main group of ruling elite including queen Rani, alpha Kamal and the other upper class members. The splinter troop splits off under the rule of a new leading pair, alpha male Devdin and queen Chaia, establishing residence in the city after finding themselves unable to rejoin the Galta Gang. Zamir, the ex-Galta Gang rebel who has been living in the wild since he was relocated by the 'monkey catcher', finds his way back to Jaipur, searching for his original family the Galta Gang. The Galta Gang loose their temple home to a troop of Langur monkeys and are forced to find a new territory in the city. Zamir continues his mission to find Rani and his old troop, but instead he runs into the newg splinter troop. Rani and the Galta Gang struggle to establish a territory, and during a run-in with the monkey catcher, Rani's youngest offspring Teejay goes missing. New alpha male Kamal cannot live up to his role as leader and the troop becomes unstable. Little Teejay, Rani's lost son, tries to find his missing family but instead winds up back at the Galta Temple, where he discovers a new group of primates have taken up residence, the Langur monkeys. Hungry and alone, Teejey climbs a high tension power pylon and suffers an electric shock similar to the one Kavi experienced in the first season. He is taken to the same animal rescue charity hospital, 'Help in Suffering' where he receives emergency medical treatment, but he dies from his wounds. The rest of the Galta Gang scrapes a meager living in the streets of Jaipur where they eventually run into the splinter troop, who cause them to flee in fear. Zamir eventually locates Rani and the Galta Gang, but instead of launching an attack, he leads the troop to find food. Eventually he even leads them back to the Galta Temple, where under his leadership they are able to evict the langur monkeys and take back residence of their temple home. Zamir, once the biggest villain of the troop, is now the alpha male of the Galta Gang. With Rani at his side he is finally lord and master of the Galta Temple.
who live in the Galta Temple situated within the Pink City of Jaipur, northwestern India. With the support of his partner Rani (the alpha female), Tarak has led the troop for over three years. He has fathered the majority of the troop youngsters including his latest offspring with Rani, Esha. Although secure in his position, one of Tarak's biggest concerns is disposal and his devious subordinate Zamir has his eye on the top job. Tarak continues to try and maintain control over his troop while Zamir proves his good attributes of being a leader with his food finding skills. Fortunately Tarak manages to maintain the support of Rani, the alpha female of the troop and her sisterhood. During a drought season, Tarak leads the Galta Gang into the city where they undertake burglary in stealing food from people's households, a far cry from the luxury they are used to at the Galta Temple where food is just handed over to them. With Tarak's success in leading the troop to find food means the guarantee of survival of the troop and its youngsters. Unfortunately during one foray, some of troop are trapped by the 'monkey catcher' and relocated, Tarak's troop with half the number of individuals originally in the Galta troop. As drought hits, the burden on Tarak's shoulders increases and at any sign of weakness is a sign for Zamir to try a take over bid. With Zamir's eventual ousting by the Galta Gang females, Tarak becomes a lot more at ease and his leadership over the troop secures, so much so that he was able lead his troop into fitting off a troop of langur monkeys from the neighbouring forest. Zamiur returns with his own troop and launches a take over bid for ownership of the temple, and during the fight Tarak gets injured and disappears, along with his heavily pregnant queen Rani. The rest of his troop manage to see off Zamir's troop under the leadership of his second in command, Kamal. Tarak and Rani remain missing for a day or so until finally Tarak is found to have died from his wounds, leaving his troop under Kamal, his trusted right-hand man. Rani re-appears with her new baby, Tarak's last offspring with Rani, Teejay.
The following members below formed the Splinter troop featured in season two of Monkey Thieves ,though the first three also appeared in season one.
who live in Galta Temple residing in the city of Jaipur, northwestern India. Tarak is the alpha male, at ten years old and has been in charge of the troop for nearly three years. He and his troop live a life of luxury within the compound of the temple where they are fed a continuous variety of food by passing worshippers who pay their respects to 'Hanuman the 'Hindu Monkey God'. With so much food and an abundance of water at the spring pool situated at the lower compound of the temple, the Galta Gang have little reason to leave home and go to the ever busy streets of Jaipur but now there is a setback. The long-awaited monsoon rains are late this year and food is running out, which means that Tarak and his troop are being given less and less food as people have to save what they have for themselves, meaning that there is little to give monkeys. As the drought continues meaning less food for the troop, Tarak leads the gang out into the city streets in search of feeding opportunities. Rhesus macaques are highly adaptable and can thrive almost anywhere, for this reason the Galta Gang, like all the 50 other troops of rhesus macaques roaming the city of Jaipur, have adapted to living in close proximity to humans and can navigate through the network of electrical wires around the city streets. The three most troublesome youngsters, Bipin, Yash and Tito, along with young Kavi get up to their usual mischievous antics. Kavi tries to chew on an electrical cable and gets a small and brief electrical shock, which was just a warning of the potential of the electrical cables designed to carry voltage not monkeys. After travelling the streets for a few hours, Rani, the Queen of the troop, decides to engage the troop in some grooming. Rani is the alpha female, is fifteen years old and already has six offspring. Her youngest and latest baby, Esha, automatically inherits the throne and has the highest rank in comparison to not only her older sisters but also all the females in troop. While most of the troop members enjoying a grooming session, the troublesome teens Bippin, Yash, Tito and tag-a-long Kavi resort to a game of jumping into a water trough, despite the interruption of visiting street dogs to the trough for a drink, before being fended off by the teens. Eventually the troop come across a feeding opportunity; a open window of an apartment. The human owners were out of sight, giving the Galta Gang an opportunity to enter the house through the kitchen window and search for food and it was not long before the whole troop ransacked the kitchen, searching for food items and literally turning the place upside-down! While most of the gang have their minds on food, Binita, Rani's oldest daughter, decides to do her own survey through the objects, such as utensils and cables, including breaking open a medicine bottle. Eventually the home owners hear the commotion and the troop flee from sight, with some of the gang tagging along their items. With everyone sated, Tarak leads the troop back to the temple for the evening, but as most of the troop relax, one member did not make it back home. During the flee from the apartment, Kavi made a potentially lethal mistake of taking to the electrical wires networking around the streets and unfortunately he suffered a massive electrical shock. He is still alive but utterly injured and not just physically. Kavi lies on the ground where he had fallen from the high voltage electrical wire and left alone he is completely vulnerable.
Rhesus Macaque
The Rhesus macaque , also called the Rhesus monkey, is one of the best-known species of Old World monkeys. It is listed as Least Concern in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species in view of its wide distribution, presumed large population, and its tolerance of a broad range of habitats...
s in the city of Jaipur
Jaipur
Jaipur , also popularly known as the Pink City, is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Rajasthan. Founded on 18 November 1727 by Maharaja Sawai Jai Singh II, the ruler of Amber, the city today has a population of more than 3.1 million....
, in northwestern India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
. Monkey Thieves follows a family of urban macaques within Jaipur's 'Pink City' and all the drama that comes from living in close proximity to humans. The series tells the story of the "Galta Gang," a sixty-strong troop that lives in the Galta Temple, a beautiful Hindu
Hindu
Hindu refers to an identity associated with the philosophical, religious and cultural systems that are indigenous to the Indian subcontinent. As used in the Constitution of India, the word "Hindu" is also attributed to all persons professing any Indian religion...
temple on the outskirts of Jaipur. This enduring and entertaining bunch live in luxury because worshipers believe they personify Hanuman
Hanuman
Hanuman , is a Hindu deity, who is an ardent devotee of Rama, a central character in the Indian epic Ramayana and one of the dearest devotees of lord Rama. A general among the vanaras, an ape-like race of forest-dwellers, Hanuman is an incarnation of the divine and a disciple of Lord Rama in the...
, the cherished 'Monkey God' who banished evil in the Indian epic Ramayana
Ramayana
The Ramayana is an ancient Sanskrit epic. It is ascribed to the Hindu sage Valmiki and forms an important part of the Hindu canon , considered to be itihāsa. The Ramayana is one of the two great epics of India and Nepal, the other being the Mahabharata...
. Defending their prized home from invaders including neighboring langur monkeys and other troops of Macaques, as well as exploring Jaipur in search of food and adventure keeps this remarkable troop in action.
Plot
Each episode starts with an introduction of the Galta Gang, a very successful troop of rhesus macaques that live in the Galta Temple within the city of Jaipur, northwestern India. Led by alpha male Tarak and his mate Rani, the troop prizes and defends their precious temple home. It's a privileged lifestyle, dining on food items handed over by worshipers visiting the temple as an offering of respect to Hanuman (the 'Monkey God' of India) and a continuous supply of water in pools fed by underground springs. It seems like paradise, but there is dissension in the ranks. Zamir, one of the largest and most powerful males in the troop has ambitions of his own. He wants the crown for himself, and he's not afraid to use any means necessary to seize the top job. In order to gain the support he needs among lower ranking members, the devious primate needs to show he can feed the family. But his raids on kitchens, cars and homes soon get him a reputation as the biggest monkey burglar in all of Jaipur. Zamir is eventually ousted from the troop and spends months wandering the busy city streets on his own. Eventually he joins another troop, and in no time he's up to his old tricks. But before he can even put his plans in action, the alpha of his new gang is trapped by the city's monkey catcher along with many of his top lieutenants, and Zamir suddenly finds himself in charge. When the annual MonsoonMonsoon
Monsoon is traditionally defined as a seasonal reversing wind accompanied by corresponding changes in precipitation, but is now used to describe seasonal changes in atmospheric circulation and precipitation associated with the asymmetric heating of land and sea...
rains fail to appear as scheduled a drought threatens already limited food resources, and the city's population is forced to choose between their own families and the Galta Gang. Fewer people willing to hand out food to the macaques at the temple means empty bellies, forcing Tarak to leave their precious temple home unguarded as he leads his family into the city in search of feeding opportunities. Their ambitious neighbors the langur monkeys try to steal ownership of the ancient temple but the Galta Gang returns, launching into battle and forcing the langurs to flee. Life for the Galta Gang is full of surprises. Zamir and his new troop launch a takeover bid for the temple but the Galta Gang holds them off as well. Zamir is eventually captured by the city's 'Monkey Catcher' and relocated 70 miles away. Tarak, the long-term alpha male of the Galta Gang, dies from wounds he sustains during the battle with Zamir's troop. Rani, the queen of the troop also disappears, turning up days later with her newest baby at her breast. With their king gone and Zamir no longer a threat, Kamal, Tarak's second in command takes over leadership of the Galta Gang.
Season two of the series rejoins the Galta Gang several months after the death of Tarak. Kamal, the new alpha male, does not have the skills necessary to lead the troop. But there's an even greater concern. The Galta Gang's population has reached over 80 members. Macaque troops usually undergo a process known as fission when their number approach this level. Lower class members including featured teenagers Bipin, Yash and Tito, plus as many as 40 others, splinter away from the main group of ruling elite including queen Rani, alpha Kamal and the other upper class members. The splinter troop splits off under the rule of a new leading pair, alpha male Devdin and queen Chaia, establishing residence in the city after finding themselves unable to rejoin the Galta Gang. Zamir, the ex-Galta Gang rebel who has been living in the wild since he was relocated by the 'monkey catcher', finds his way back to Jaipur, searching for his original family the Galta Gang. The Galta Gang loose their temple home to a troop of Langur monkeys and are forced to find a new territory in the city. Zamir continues his mission to find Rani and his old troop, but instead he runs into the newg splinter troop. Rani and the Galta Gang struggle to establish a territory, and during a run-in with the monkey catcher, Rani's youngest offspring Teejay goes missing. New alpha male Kamal cannot live up to his role as leader and the troop becomes unstable. Little Teejay, Rani's lost son, tries to find his missing family but instead winds up back at the Galta Temple, where he discovers a new group of primates have taken up residence, the Langur monkeys. Hungry and alone, Teejey climbs a high tension power pylon and suffers an electric shock similar to the one Kavi experienced in the first season. He is taken to the same animal rescue charity hospital, 'Help in Suffering' where he receives emergency medical treatment, but he dies from his wounds. The rest of the Galta Gang scrapes a meager living in the streets of Jaipur where they eventually run into the splinter troop, who cause them to flee in fear. Zamir eventually locates Rani and the Galta Gang, but instead of launching an attack, he leads the troop to find food. Eventually he even leads them back to the Galta Temple, where under his leadership they are able to evict the langur monkeys and take back residence of their temple home. Zamir, once the biggest villain of the troop, is now the alpha male of the Galta Gang. With Rani at his side he is finally lord and master of the Galta Temple.
Galta Gang
The following macaques were featured in the show and only these were observed and mentioned as members of the Galta Gang.Tarak
At the beginning of the show, we are introduced to Tarak, the 10 year old alpha male of the Galta Gang, a troop of rhesus macaquesRhesus Macaque
The Rhesus macaque , also called the Rhesus monkey, is one of the best-known species of Old World monkeys. It is listed as Least Concern in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species in view of its wide distribution, presumed large population, and its tolerance of a broad range of habitats...
who live in the Galta Temple situated within the Pink City of Jaipur, northwestern India. With the support of his partner Rani (the alpha female), Tarak has led the troop for over three years. He has fathered the majority of the troop youngsters including his latest offspring with Rani, Esha. Although secure in his position, one of Tarak's biggest concerns is disposal and his devious subordinate Zamir has his eye on the top job. Tarak continues to try and maintain control over his troop while Zamir proves his good attributes of being a leader with his food finding skills. Fortunately Tarak manages to maintain the support of Rani, the alpha female of the troop and her sisterhood. During a drought season, Tarak leads the Galta Gang into the city where they undertake burglary in stealing food from people's households, a far cry from the luxury they are used to at the Galta Temple where food is just handed over to them. With Tarak's success in leading the troop to find food means the guarantee of survival of the troop and its youngsters. Unfortunately during one foray, some of troop are trapped by the 'monkey catcher' and relocated, Tarak's troop with half the number of individuals originally in the Galta troop. As drought hits, the burden on Tarak's shoulders increases and at any sign of weakness is a sign for Zamir to try a take over bid. With Zamir's eventual ousting by the Galta Gang females, Tarak becomes a lot more at ease and his leadership over the troop secures, so much so that he was able lead his troop into fitting off a troop of langur monkeys from the neighbouring forest. Zamiur returns with his own troop and launches a take over bid for ownership of the temple, and during the fight Tarak gets injured and disappears, along with his heavily pregnant queen Rani. The rest of his troop manage to see off Zamir's troop under the leadership of his second in command, Kamal. Tarak and Rani remain missing for a day or so until finally Tarak is found to have died from his wounds, leaving his troop under Kamal, his trusted right-hand man. Rani re-appears with her new baby, Tarak's last offspring with Rani, Teejay.
Rani
As the alpha female of the Galta Gang, Rani is the queen of the troop and she and her sisterhood are the core of the Galta Gang. At the start of the show, Rani has a new baby, Esha and she and other nursing mothers begin to admire Zamir's food-finding skills, though they continue to support Tarak as the alpha male. Zamir launched an attack on various members of the troop and attacked Rani, which led to the Galta Gang sisterhood defending their queen and ousting Zamir. Through the hardships of the dry season, Rani and Tarak lead the troop through the city to find food and witness the capture of several of their family members by the city's 'monkey catcher'. Her youngest daughter, Esha, the next to become queen of the troop, goes missing in one of her forrays and ends up coming face to face with Zamir, the Galta Gang outcast. Fortunately Rani was re-united with Esha though being pregnant again meant that Esha was no longer going to be her only priority. The Galta Gang reach the Temple and get attacked by Zamir's new-found troop. Rani and Tarak disappear and at the end of the first season Rani reappears with her new baby, Teejay, though her life-long partner Tarak did not make it back. Kamal, once Tarak's number two, takes over leadership of the troop with Rani's support, though he fails to impress her when the Galta Gang loose their temple to a troop of langur monkeys. Half of the troop of lower class members were ousted by Rani and her upper class individuals, making the Galta Gang short in power to defend the temple from invasion. Kamal fails to be able to lead the troop to find food, leaving Rani and the other females searching for food in the streets. Her young son Teejey disappears only to appear later injured by an electric shock and died at an animal charity. Life for Rani and her remaining troop becomes harder, including being chased off by their splinter troop which they run into in one occasion. Rani and her troop are pursued by a group of bachelor males when Kamal is unable to defend the troop. During a food raid, Kamal gets the opportunity to prove his worth to Rani by leading the troop to find food, but gets captured later by the monkey catcher, leaving Rani and the remaining troop members without a leader. Zamir eventually finds Rani and leads her and her troop back into fighting for their temple. Rani and the Galta Gang regains ownership of the Galta Temple from the langur monkeys, with Zamir as the troop's alpha male.Zamir
Zamir, a large 9 year old male, is the biggest troublemaker in the troop and from the start of the show it features him having leadership ambitions. He constantly tests Tarak's leadership and control over the troop. Zamir gets his opportunity to prove his worth to Queen Rani by leading the troop into fining food, though he fails to take over control from Tarak. Frustrated, Zamir attacks several troop members including Rani, resulting in the troop of females ousting him from the Galta Temple. Zamir strikes out on his own and after many months wondering the streets solitary he reappears to want to join an established troop. Zamir pursues Fang's troop at the city market and tries to consort with one of the females in the periphery, but unfortunately his plan fails and he flees. Zamir continues to wonder the streets, causing mayhem with the human residents making him the biggest 'monkey menace' in Jaipur. During one of his food pursues, he ends up wondering into the territory of another troop, Vasu's troop and instead of being attacked, he gets accepted. During one of the food forays, Vasu, the alpha male of the new troop, and several others get caught by the 'monkey catcher', leaving Zamir in charge of his own troop. One of the Galta Gang members, Kavi, who was cared for at an animal charity after suffering an electric shock eight months ago, is released and as a mistake of identity ends up joining Zamir's troop. Zamir maintains his quest to take control over the Galta Temple and vengeance to his old troop. He eventually leads his troop in war with the Galta Gang though in his first attempt fails, but it leads to his arch rival Tarak being seriously injured. At the back of the temple, Zamir's greed gets the better of him and he ends up falling into a trap by the monkey catcher, who has finally managed to capture 'Mr. devious Zamir' after months of pursuit of this particular macaque. Zamir gets relocated to a forest along with several others of his troop and learns to adapt to his new life with a wild macaque troop, though hitches a ride in a truck heading towards the city of Jaipur. Back in the city after months seven months away, it does not take long for Zamir to remember where he is and he immediately seeks his old troop, the Galta Gang. Zamir wonders the streets for weeks searching for the Galta Temple, and ends up running into the Galta Gang's splinter troop, where he is easily recognised by Bippin and the troop's alpha male Devdin, though Zamir flees, not looking for a fight but for Rani and the Galt Gang elite, who he finally finds just after the capture of Kamal, the Galta Gang's alpha male. During Rani and her sisterhood's encounter with a roving group of bachelor males, Zamir rushes to the defence of the Galta Gang females and in doing so wins the favour of Rani, even though the pair have not seen each other for months. Zamir becomes the alpha male of the Galta Gang and proves to be more of a strong leader than the former alpha male Kamal. Zamir leads Rani and her troop to feeding opportunities and eventually, back to Galta Temple, where Zamir had been before once he returned but found a troop of langurs. The Galta Gang manage to re-own the temple from the fleeing langurs, though Zamir does not make it back at first after pursuing the langurs in the forest, before finally reappearing, having completed his mission of returning Rani and her troop back to their temple. Zamir becomes the new alpha male and lord of Galta Temple and the Galta Gang at the end of the show.Kamal
At the first season, Kamal is featured as alpha male Tarak's second in command after Tarak disappeared following a battle between the Galta Gang and Zamir's troop, Kamal manages to lead the troop into finishing the battle to keep hold of their temple. Kamal maintains his vigil for the return of Tarak though eventually finds the old leader to have died from his wounds overnight somewhere at the back of the temple. The leadership of the Galta Gang falls to Kamal who manages to gain acceptance from Rani. Their neighbours, the langur monkeys, launch an attack on the temple and Kamal, instead of being upfront defending the troop, flees leading the rest of the Galta Gang fleeing from the temple, leaving Galta Temple in the ownership of the langur monkeys. Kamal continues to fail to impress queen Rani and prove his worth. While still living at the temple, Kamal and Rani ousted half of their troop who formed a splinter troop in the city, and Kamal and the Galta Gang run into them. Once again, Kamal fails to defend the troop and the Galta Gang flees from what were their underlings. However, during a raid in a hospital, Kamal manages to prove his food-finding skills and finally impresses queen Rani, though in that very same day Kamal gets caught in a trap of the 'monkey catcher' and gets driven away for relocation, leaving Rani and her troop without an alpha male.Binita
Binita is Rani's oldest daughter. She has a tendency of collecting human accessories and found it unpleasant to accept that her younger sister Esha ranks higher than her in the hierarchy (which is primitive in all macaque societies). In an episode in season one features Binita kidnapping her baby sister Esha from her mother Rani but eventually Rani takes back her baby from her ambitious older daughter. In the show she is referred to as 'Corky Binita' and 'Eccentric Binita' because of her unusual character and possessive tendencies.Esha
Esha is Rani's second and youngest daughter, which makes her future queen of the Galta Gang. In season one episodes feature Esha as a baby who grows up into an inquisitive youngster. During her forays to steal some flowers she gets lost and finds herself as a target for Zamir, the Galta Gang outcast as she played with another youngster from Fang's troop. Esha flees from her pursuer and fortunately manages to get reunited with her mother Rani and her family. After the battle in the temple between the Galta Gang and Zamir's troop, Rani and Tarak disappear. Esha becomes restless with the disappearance of her mother before Rani finally reappears with her new baby, Esha's new little brother ,Teejay, who disappeared in season two episodes following.Anoop
Anoop is one of the young males in the Galta Gang and is featured becoming obsessive over ice-cream which he remembered having led a raid on an ice-cream cart in season one and his craving for it. In season one he is seen as one of the followers of the trio Bipin, Yash and Tito.Kavi
During one feeding foray, the troop fled from the scene with the returning human and Kavi took the high electric wires to try and escape, but unfortunately suffered a massive electric shock. He was taken in and cared for by an animal charity organisation called 'Help in Suffering' and nurtured before being taken back to the city for possible release. Unfortunately the Galta Gang, his former family, could not recognise him and the site of a monkey in a cage triggered a flight response from the troop, leaving Kavi with no chance of being able to be reunited with them. When Kavi was released, he ended up joining a rival troop, Zamir's troop, instead of his family and only realised this when Zamir's troop marched their way to the Galta Temple for battle. Kavi broke way from the mistaken troop and ended up back with the Galta Gang and his pals, Bippin, Yash and Tito.Teejay
Teejay was Rani's youngest son and last offspring of Tarak with Rani. During a run in with the monkey catchers, Teejay fled and ended up lost, searching the streets for his family which ended up in him finding his way to the Galta Temple, but instead of finding his family he found the temple's new residence, the langur monkeys. Teejay continued his solo forrays and ended up receiving an electric shock when he tried to climb the elcetric wires. He was taken in by an animal charity organisation known as 'Help in Suffering' and received a lot of care but died.The following members below formed the Splinter troop featured in season two of Monkey Thieves ,though the first three also appeared in season one.
Bipin
Bipin was one of the rowdy teenage males in the Galta Gang. He suffered from depression when his best pals, Yash and Tito, were captured along with several other Galta Gang troop members by the city's monkey catcher. Fortunate enough the Galta Gang captures managed to make their way back to city and Bippin was relieved to be reunited with Yash and Tito. In season two, Bipin and around forty other lower ranking troop members were ousted from Galta Temple by queen Rani and her upper-class members. The Splinter troop established a territory in the city, only to encounter the Galta Gang(ousted from the temple by the langurs) but saw them off.Yash
Yash was one of three rowdy teenage males and best pals with Bipin and Tito. During a feeding forray, Yash, Tito and several other members of the Galta Gang were captured by the monkey catcher and relocated in the forest. The captured individuals eventually managed to find their way back to Jaipur city and reunite with the Galta Gang. In season two, Yash and around forty other lower ranking Galta Gang members left the temple to form the splinter troop after being ousted by queen Rani and her upper-class family.Tito
Tito was one of three rowdy teenage males and best pals with Bipin and Yash. During a feeding foray, Yash, Tito and several other members of the Galta Gang were captured by the monkey catcher and relocated in the forest. The captured individuals eventually managed to find their way back to Jaipur city and reunite with the Galta Gang. In season two, Tito and around forty other lower ranking Galta Gang members left the temple to form the splinter troop after being ousted by queen Rani and her upper-class family.Devdin
After the lower ranking members of the Galta Gang were ousted from the temple by Rani, Devdin, a subordinate male, took leadership of his small splinter troop and became their new alpha male, with the support of his queen Chaia and their baby Dimple and led his troop out of the temple and into the city searching for a new territory in take ownership of. During a run in with the bachelor males, Devdin led his troop out of the Pink City and into a desolate old castle building before deciding to lead his splinter troop back to the city ad establishing a new territory, including fending off Zamir and the Galta Gang elite from their newfound patch of real-estate.Fang
Fang, named by his scar at the left side of his mouth, was the Galta Gang's most feared enemy. Fang and his troop laid claim to the city's market and Fang vigorously defended his territory from other troops, including fending off Zamir when he tried to consort with one of his females.Vasu
Vasu was the original alpha male of the troop Zamir joined after he reappeared from exile. He was impressed by Zamir's food-finding skills and in doing so allowed him to join his troop. During a feeding foray at a grain market, Zamir set Vasu and a handful of his troop members up and got them caught by the city's 'monkey catcher' and were relocated to a faraway forest outside the city of Jaipur. Vasu and his captured followers learn to adapt to their new environment after realising that they could never make it back to the city of Jaipur.Episode listing
Note: This sector is under construction........and will be completed as soon as possible within a short duration....Episode 1: Apartment Job
We are introduced to the Galta Gang, a 60-strong troop of wild but urbanised rhesus macaquesRhesus Macaque
The Rhesus macaque , also called the Rhesus monkey, is one of the best-known species of Old World monkeys. It is listed as Least Concern in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species in view of its wide distribution, presumed large population, and its tolerance of a broad range of habitats...
who live in Galta Temple residing in the city of Jaipur, northwestern India. Tarak is the alpha male, at ten years old and has been in charge of the troop for nearly three years. He and his troop live a life of luxury within the compound of the temple where they are fed a continuous variety of food by passing worshippers who pay their respects to 'Hanuman the 'Hindu Monkey God'. With so much food and an abundance of water at the spring pool situated at the lower compound of the temple, the Galta Gang have little reason to leave home and go to the ever busy streets of Jaipur but now there is a setback. The long-awaited monsoon rains are late this year and food is running out, which means that Tarak and his troop are being given less and less food as people have to save what they have for themselves, meaning that there is little to give monkeys. As the drought continues meaning less food for the troop, Tarak leads the gang out into the city streets in search of feeding opportunities. Rhesus macaques are highly adaptable and can thrive almost anywhere, for this reason the Galta Gang, like all the 50 other troops of rhesus macaques roaming the city of Jaipur, have adapted to living in close proximity to humans and can navigate through the network of electrical wires around the city streets. The three most troublesome youngsters, Bipin, Yash and Tito, along with young Kavi get up to their usual mischievous antics. Kavi tries to chew on an electrical cable and gets a small and brief electrical shock, which was just a warning of the potential of the electrical cables designed to carry voltage not monkeys. After travelling the streets for a few hours, Rani, the Queen of the troop, decides to engage the troop in some grooming. Rani is the alpha female, is fifteen years old and already has six offspring. Her youngest and latest baby, Esha, automatically inherits the throne and has the highest rank in comparison to not only her older sisters but also all the females in troop. While most of the troop members enjoying a grooming session, the troublesome teens Bippin, Yash, Tito and tag-a-long Kavi resort to a game of jumping into a water trough, despite the interruption of visiting street dogs to the trough for a drink, before being fended off by the teens. Eventually the troop come across a feeding opportunity; a open window of an apartment. The human owners were out of sight, giving the Galta Gang an opportunity to enter the house through the kitchen window and search for food and it was not long before the whole troop ransacked the kitchen, searching for food items and literally turning the place upside-down! While most of the gang have their minds on food, Binita, Rani's oldest daughter, decides to do her own survey through the objects, such as utensils and cables, including breaking open a medicine bottle. Eventually the home owners hear the commotion and the troop flee from sight, with some of the gang tagging along their items. With everyone sated, Tarak leads the troop back to the temple for the evening, but as most of the troop relax, one member did not make it back home. During the flee from the apartment, Kavi made a potentially lethal mistake of taking to the electrical wires networking around the streets and unfortunately he suffered a massive electrical shock. He is still alive but utterly injured and not just physically. Kavi lies on the ground where he had fallen from the high voltage electrical wire and left alone he is completely vulnerable.