Jungle Book Wiki
Register
Advertisement

Meshua's husband was the richest man in an Indian village. His wife Meshua decided to adopt the wild boy Mowgli, who had strayed out of the jungle, because she believed him to be their long-lost son Nathoo. Her husband was initially as enthusiastic as she was, but the boy's ignorance of village customs resulted in some embarrassing incidents for which he was penalised; early editions of The Jungle Book mention an incident in which he has to placate the village priest with silver, but this is cut from later editions.

When Buldeo, the village's chief hunter, learned that Mowgli could command wolves, he accuses the boy of being a sorcerer and had him driven from the village. Meshua and her husband were sentenced to death for harbouring him. Learning of their incarceration just in time, Mowgli returned and rescues them, but his adopted father was not happy at having to leave most of his money behind.

Six or seven years later Mowgli learned that Meshua and her husband settled in a new village where he fathered another son but died soon after. Mowgli showed no grief at his death and did not inquire as to the cause.

Non-canon appearances[]

  • Meshua's husband appears in Disney's The Jungle Book 2 where like in the books, he's never named. He also has a biological son named Ranjan. He seems somewhat paranoid of the jungle much like Shanti, which clashes with Mowgli's embracing of it: this is evidenced when he catches Mowgli trying to wander into the jungle with other children fallowing (thanks to Shanti) and grounds him because of it. Much later, after the children defeat Shere Khan at a volcano, Meshua's husband finally accepts that Mowgli will always have his jungle-upbringing with him for good. At the end of the movie, it is revealed that he allows Mowgli, Shanti and Ranjan to visit the jungle and socialize with their animal-friends whenever they want.
  • Meshua's husband also appears in the anime-version Jungle Book Shōnen Mowgli. This version is majorly different than his book-self: he is given the name Nil-(in the Japanese version)-slash-Sanjay (in the English-version), has a daughter named Jumeirah, a father-in-law named Rahhar, and shows little, if any, hatred towards Mowgli, though like in the books he does die.
  • In Jetlag Film, Meshua's husband switched to Buldeo, but Mowgli's Adoptive Human Father.
Advertisement