777 Charlie: 5 Heartwarming Stories of A Human & Dog’s Bond That Are Worth A Movie

You know the saying, ‘a dog is a man’s best friend’ — it’s old, common, and true. If you’re a dog owner, you definitely agree. That bond between you and your furry friend is special and indescribable.

Caring for a dog is no easy feat, but it’s rewarding nonetheless. The relationship remains unique and real.

When it comes to celebrating the human-dog dynamic, movies across industries have captured different nuances — from Hachi (2009) to Chillar Party(2011).

And now, another addition to this list is the upcoming and highly anticipated ‘777 Charlie’. This pan-India venture from the Kannada film industry is directed by Kiran Raj, starring Rakshit Shetty and a labrador retriever named Charlie.

The movie, which will hit the screens on 10 June, is expected to deliver a light-hearted and breezy, yet emotional ride. “The film is about a loner and his relationship with a dog named Charlie. He does not even talk to his neighbours. Then Charlie comes into his life and the story is about how the pet changes his world,” Rakshit Shetty told The Hindu in an interview.

Produced by Rakshit Shetty and G S Gupta under the banner of Paramvah Studios, the movie is set to release in five languages — Kannada, Telugu, Tamil, Malayalam and Hindi — across the world. The trailer of the movie has already taken the internet by storm.

While 777 Charlie is based on a fictional story, there are thousands of real-life tales that show how intense the love between a dog and its human can be. We found five such real life stories that can be made into beautiful movies:

1. Gowtham Kumar and his dog Chandramouli, who went on a road trip together

Gowtham Kumar from Karnataka grabbed the country’s attention when he came up with a unique ‘dog ambulance’ for pet owners who struggle to find appropriate transport at the time of emergencies.

He later made news when he took his adopted pet dog — an indie named Chandramouli — for a road trip through Karnataka. The duo visited iconic tourist spots on Gowtham’s bike.

The idea of a road trip with Chandramouli came to him when he decided to combine his love for traveling and his love for dogs. He didn’t want to forgo his adventurous side and for his best friend to miss out on unique experiences. So he attached a dog carrier to his bike and gave it a few rounds of testing. He also fit a cushion in the carrier to make sure his canine companion was comfortable.

According to Gowtham, the trip, which lasted for around four days, was eventful. He says that Chandramouli loved traveling with him so much that she stayed awake in her crate almost throughout the journey.

2. Arya, who refused to leave the war-zone without her pet dog, Zaira

Arya Aldrin, a medical student in Ukraine, made news a few months ago when she refused to return to her home in Kerala without her pet dog Zaira, a Syberian husky.

Arya had started preparing to get the dog out of Ukraine even before the war was declared, and managed to get a pet passport, vaccination papers, and a microchip thinking that they could both fly out. But when the time came, the second year MBBS student had to face several hurdles to carry her pet dog along with her.

As the crisis escalated, she traveled by a bus to the neighbouring Romania and walked around 12 km with Zaira. She didn’t let her dog go even when the Romanian soldiers stopped her from taking Zaira along. Eventually, the soldiers allowed her to take her dog along.

“[At] six months-old, the pet dog is not used to long walks. She cooperated with me fully. At one point she was tired as blisters appeared on her pugs, so I dumped my bags to carry her,” Arya told the media.

When the duo reached the Romanian airport, she was asked to find a cage to put Zaira in while flying. Finally, after a few hours, a lot of running around and another missed flight, Arya and Zaira flew to India together.

3. Harvinder Singh, who takes around his puppy Ronnie in his auto-rickshaw

The story of Harvinder Singh, an auto-rickshaw driver in Pune, went viral for all right reasons. Pune-based author Manjiri Prabhu narrated the tale of how Harvinder rides his auto along with his adorable puppy, Ronnie.

When Manjiri and her sister hailed Harvinder’s auto, they noticed a small puppy curled up beside the driver’s seat. She asked him why he was carrying him around.

He told her that the puppy had been brought home by his son. However, since there was no one home to look after Ronnie, he decided to take him to work instead of abandoning him. Ronnie travels with Harvinder everywhere, and the latter even keeps food and water in his vehicle for him.

4. The couple who travel with their three furry friends on trains

 

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Divya Dugar, a journalist from Delhi, and her partner Olivier Telle started documenting their Indian train journeys with their two adopted indie dogs — Tigress and Marcopolo — through Instagram in 2017.

Later, their family grew with the addition of one more indie dog Pari, and their son, Marius. Now they travel with their three furry friends and their toddler.

The couple started traveling via trains because Tigress had extreme car sickness. According to them, the Indian Railways is very pet-friendly, though it has several rules and regulations. Regardless, the family feels that traveling with dogs is rewarding, and they continue with their journeys.

They also help hundreds of pet parents who want to take their furry friends on trains by guiding them with all the tips and tricks required for the trip.

5. Divya, who feeds over 650 stray dogs everyday

Divya Gurwara, a Delhi-NCR-based entrepreneur, went from not liking dogs to feeding over 650 stray dogs each day, through her initiative Kitchen for Paws.

Though she didn’t dislike strays, she never had any special liking for dogs until her son Dhruv brought home a 30-days-old beagle. Divya says her first reaction on seeing the little pup was not that of anger, but of sadness at the dog being separated from his mother.

There was an instant change in her attitude, and she eventually went from not caring to becoming a super caring pet parent, worried about every little move that the beagle made.

The beagle was named ‘Astro’, and he went on to stay with Gurwara’s for years.

It was this tiny dog’s influence that led Divya to start Kitchen for Paws — an initiative that feeds over 650 stray dogs every day.

Sources:

Kerala girl who refused to leave Ukraine without her pet arrives in Delhi by Hindustan Times, published on 4 May, 2022.

#TravelIsLove: Divya Dugar & Olivier Telle Let Us In On The Chaos In Their Coupe by Travel+Leisure, published on 11 February 2022.