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| Hathi | |
|---|---|
| The Jungle Book character | |
 Hathi as illustrated by W. H. Drake in the 1895 edition ofThe Two Jungle Books | |
| First appearance | "Kaa's Hunting" |
| Last appearance | "Letting in the Jungle" |
| Created by | Rudyard Kipling |
| In-universe information | |
| Nickname | Colonel Hathi |
| Species | Indian elephant |
| Gender | Male |
| Occupation | Colonel |
| Children | 3 |
Hathi is a fictional character created byRudyard Kipling for theMowgli stories collected inThe Jungle Book (1894) andThe Second Jungle Book (1895). Hathi is anelephant that lives in the Seeoni jungle.[1] Kipling named him afterhāthī (हाथी), theHindi word for "elephant".
Hathi is head of the elephant troop. He is one of the oldest animals of the jungle and represents order, dignity and obedience tothe Law of the Jungle. Hathi is famed for his patience and never hurries unnecessarily.
In "How Fear Came" at the time when the water truce occurred, he tells Mowgli and the jungle animals'creation myth and describes Tha, the first of elephants and how the first tiger broke the first law by slaying a man thus condemning the animals to being prey for humankind. He told this afterShere Khan the tiger had boasted about killing a man purely for sport.
In the story "Letting In the Jungle", Mowgli reveals that Hathi once destroyed a human village in revenge for being captured and persuades Hathi and his sons to do the same to the village where Mowgli once lived as punishment for threateningMessua with execution.
Hathi appears in the1967 animated adaptation byWalt Disney Productions, where he is voiced byJ. Pat O'Malley. He is a comically pompous elephant who styles himself after aBritish Army colonel, referring to himself as "Colonel Hathi" and leading his troop in a marching patrol around the jungle. He is seen as obnoxious by the other animals including his own herd and is forgetful, though he insists that "an elephant never forgets". His marching awakens Mowgli, who attempts to join, though Hathi becomes angry when he notices Mowgli is a human, wanting "no mancub in my jungle".Bagheera takes Mowgli away and Hathi continues marching before he notices he has left Hathi Junior behind. He goes back to get him but forgets to order his troop to halt, causing the herd to crash into him much to Mowgli's amusement.Bagheera later asks him to help him find Mowgli after he runs away fromBaloo, reminding him that Shere Khan has returned to the jungle. Hathi agrees after Winifred and Hathi Junior convince him and orders the troop to begin searching. Unbeknownst to them, Shere Khan decides to start looking for Mowgli by himself, having heard them from only yards away.
Hathi returns in the Disney sequelThe Jungle Book 2 in whichJim Cummings provides his voice. He and his troop help Bagheera prevent Baloo from entering the human village where Mowgli is living, though Baloo evades them. Hathi tries to chase Baloo across the bridge leading to the village, but it breaks under his weight, causing him and Bagheera to fall into the river below. Hathi is later seen fleeing from villagers searching for Mowgli and his friends; Bagheera deduces from him that Baloo has something to do with the children going missing.
Hathi appears as a calf in the prequel seriesJungle Cubs, where he is voiced byRob Paulsen in season one andStephen Furst in season two. Hathi is friendly with the other cubs, though he is usually seen trying to court his future mate Winifred. Winifred lives with her herd under the ownership of humans until a storm separates her from her herd, causing her to meet Hathi.
Hathi appears inThe Jungle Book: Mowgli's Story, voiced byMarty Ingels.
A pizza restaurant inDisneyland Paris is namedColonel Hathi's Pizza Outpost.