Story from 'Ek Tha Tiger' to 'Tiger Zinda Hai' must go further: PM Modi's B'wood wordplay at tiger census report

Prime Minister Narendra Modi combined oratorical flair and a love for Bollywood to drive home the message to intensify efforts to preserve the population of tigers.

"The story which started from 'Ek Tha Tiger' and reached to 'Tiger Zinda hai', shouldn't end there," he said, referring to the Salman Khan-starrer Bollywood movies in his address after releasing the tiger census report here on International Tiger Day.

After releasing the All India Tiger Estimation 2018, he pointed out that India had has achieved the target of doubling the tiger population four years early ahead of 2022. According to the report the population of tigers in India has increased 33 per cent from 2,226 in 2014 to 2,967 in 2018.

Modi added, "Only tiger being alive won't help. We have to intensify the steps related to tiger conservation and the speed of such initiatives must be intensified".

By invoking the names of Salman Khan starrer 'Tiger Zinda Hai' and its sequel 'Ek Tha Tiger", the prime minister attempted to strike a chord with young India and connect them with the campaign to conserve the population of tigers.

This is not the first time for popular Salman Khan Starrer flicks to be invoked in different references by acclaimed politicians.

Soon after losing assembly elections in December last year former chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan had also urged people of Madhya Pradesh to not worry saying, "Tiger Abhi Zinda Hai" (Tiger is still alive).

'Tiger Zinda Hai', the sequel of 'Ek Tha Tiger', was released in December 2017 with Salman Khan and Katrina Kaif as the lead pair.

( With inputs from ANI )