Baloo

Name and species

He is described in Kipling's work as "the sleepy brown bear". Robert Armitage Sterndale, from whom Kipling derived most of his knowledge of Indian fauna, used the Hindi word "Bhalu" for several bear species, though Daniel Karlin, who edited the Penguin reissue of The Jungle Book in 1987, states that, with the exception of colour, Kipling's descriptions of Baloo are consistent with the sloth bear, as brown and Asian black bears do not occur in the Seoni area where the story takes place. Also, the name sloth can be used in the context of sleepiness. Karlin states, however, that Baloo's diet of "only roots and nuts and honey" is a trait more common to the Asian black bear than to the sloth bear. Nevertheless, this may be single observation only; according to the dietary habits of sloth bears, while sloth bears prefer termites and ants (which is also described as Baloo's special treat in The Jungle Book), their main sources of food are honey and fruits most of the year. In the 1967 Walt Disney's The Jungle Book, he's portrayed as a sloth bear, while in the Russian version, he's portrayed as an Asian black bear. In the 1994 remake of The Jungle Book, Baloo is depicted as a cinnamon bear, while live-action television shows and films often have Baloo as an American black bear. In the 2016 adaptation, Baloo is stated to be a sloth bear by Bagheera, though his appearance is similar to that of a Himalayan brown bear. Though this subspecies of the brown bear is absent from historical records on Seoni, it might have ranged across most of northern India.

Another possibility is that this character was named after Balochistan Bear, a sub-species of Asiatic black bear, which can be found around Baluchistan mountain range of Pakistan and India. Another strong supporting fact to this theory is that Balochistan bears love to eat bananas and other fruits. In several scenes of the Jungle Book, Baloo is shown to be eating bananas and prickly pears.

Pronunciation

In the Author's Notes in the Jungle Books, Kipling gives the pronunciation of the name as BAH-loo; although it is also commonly pronounced .

In film, television, and theatre

Disney versions

Baloo, based on Kipling's creation, has appeared in various Disney productions, starting with the company's 1967 feature-length animated film adaptation of The Jungle Book. In this version, Baloo (voiced by Phil Harris) is portrayed as a friendly, even-tempered character who lives a responsibility-free lifestyle, seemingly far removed from the law teacher in Kipling's book. Like in the novel, Baloo is one of Mowgli's mentors and friends. Baloo is also patient and strong; his only apparent weakness is that he's ticklish. Baloo is initially opposed to bringing Mowgli to the Man Village, wanting to raise him as a son. However, when Bagheera explains that Mowgli is easy prey for Shere Khan the tiger and that he's not safe in the jungle, even with Baloo's diligent protection, Baloo realizes he has a point and agrees to tell Mowgli the difficult truth. Mowgli turns on Baloo and runs away, prompting him and Bagheera to split up and search for the boy. Baloo isn't seen again until the climax of the film, when he sees Mowgli preparing to battle Shere Khan. Baloo attempts to stop the tiger, but almost gets killed in the process. After Mowgli follows a girl into the village and decides to stay there, Baloo is slightly disappointed, but is ultimately relieved that Mowgli is safe at last. He and Bagheera then return to the jungle as they sing a reprise of "The Bare Necessities" together.

Baloo returns in the 2003 animated sequel The Jungle Book 2 in which he is voiced by John Goodman. He is eager to reunite with Mowgli, in spite of Bagheera's exasperation and the return of a vindictive Shere Khan, humiliated by his previous defeat at Mowgli's hands. He sneaks into the Man Village at night after eluding Bagheera and Colonel Hathi's herd to visit Mowgli and takes him off into the jungle after being caught by the village girl, now given the name Shanti, who felt bad for getting Mowgli in trouble and unknowingly saves him from Shere Khan, who also came to the village. This leads Shanti, Ranjan, and some of the other villagers to go into the jungle to search for him. Mowgli tells Baloo all about the negative aspects of the village while hiding the positive feelings he also has about the place. When Baloo makes fun of Mowgli's life in the village and scares Shanti like Mowgli asked him to, he unintentionally hurts Mowgli's feelings and annoys him. Baloo and Shanti continue to hate each other until they both say they're trying to save Mowgli from Shere Khan (who ambushed Mowgli when he went after Shanti and Ranjan to apologize) during an argument. From then on, they acknowledge one another as friends. After he, Mowgli, and Shanti trap Shere Khan under a statue on a rocky outcrop in a lava lake, Baloo understands that Mowgli's place is in the village and sadly says good-bye to him. However, it is revealed the next day that Mowgli, Shanti, and Ranjan have the village leader's permission to visit the jungle as they please (presumably because, with Shere Khan gone, the jungle is now "certified as safe"). The film ends with Baloo, Shanti, and Mowgli singing a reprise of "The Bare Necessities" while Ranjan plays with Bagheera.

Japanese anime (1989)

In 1989 Japanese anime television series Jungle Book Shōnen Mowgli, also based on The Jungle Book, Baloo (voiced by Banjō Ginga in Japanese and A.J. Henderson in the English dub) is more faithfully depicted as a strict teacher of Mowgli, not above getting physical in his displeasure when the boy is being difficult. Like his Disney self, he is a sloth bear by species. In the episode "The Cold Fang", Akela reveals that Baloo lost his mother and sibling to a pack of Dholes, which became the reason for his serious nature.

Live action series (1998)

In the live-action TV series Mowgli: The New Adventures of the Jungle Book based on the original Jungle Book stories, Baloo is once again given a more sensible personality faithful to that of the books.

2010 animated series (2010–2020)

In the Indian animated TV series The Jungle Book, Baloo (voiced by Jimmy Hibbert and David Wills) is once again given a more conservative personality faithful to that of the books. He is also depicted in this series as wearing glasses and, like his Disney self, as a tall and obese himalayan brown bear with a bipedal gait.

Mowgli: Legend of the Jungle (2018 film)

In the 2018 live-action film Mowgli: Legend of the Jungle, Baloo was voiced and motion-captured by Andy Serkis who also served as the film's director. Like his book counterpart, Baloo serves as Mowgli's primary teacher. Serkis has also described this incarnation of Baloo as almost being akin to a drill sergeant who pushes Mowgli to understand the rules of the jungle. When teaching Mowgli, he often advises him not to interact with the Bandar-log. When Mowgli is attacked near the finish line by Bagheera during the rite of passage, Baloo calls him off before it goes too far. Though Mowgli says that Bagheera cut him off, Baloo advises Mowgli not to let his guard down, meaning he had still failed. After Mowgli leaves upset, Baloo furiously scolds Bagheera for being too aggressive and cutting into the test; Bagheera revealed that he failed Mowgli on purpose so that he would go to the man village to be safe from Shere Khan. Baloo, feeling that Bagheera betrayed Mowgli and caused him to fail in being a teacher to him, gets into a physical altercation with the panther, saying that Bagheera was not the only one to care about Mowgli and showing underneath the gruff exterior, the bear did care. Both stop their fighting however when Bhoot, Mowgli's albino wolf cub friend, informs them that the Bandar-log had made off with Mowgli. The two of them manage to rescue Mowgli from the Bandar-log, Shere Khan, and Tabaqui with the help of Kaa. When Akela orders Mowgli to leave the lair after he used fire to drive off Shere Khan and Tabaqui, Baloo is saddened to see him go. In the climax of the film, Baloo is among the animals that witness Mowgli's duel with Shere Khan outside the man village which ends with the death of Shere Khan.