When life gets repetitive, R. Madhavan shows how baby elephants can bring back the fearless curiosity that adulthood weakens

Actor R. Madhavan recently shared an Instagram story that caught the attention of animal lovers. The story featured a video from the Instagram handle lqzoomiezoo, showing baby elephants exploring their surroundings in a playful and clumsy way. Madhavan’s post highlighted the sheer curiosity of these young elephants, showing how they learn to use their trunks and interact with the world.

“If there's one little mischief maker in the animal kingdom, it's baby elephants. When they are born they already weigh around 120 kgs, big and chubby. But their curiosity is even bigger. They are like little kids exploring everything around them, especially their own trunks. Can you imagine, they often do not know what their trunk is for and sometimes step on it with their feet, letting out a little squeal,” the video explained. It further added that walking around can be an adventure for them, with small bumps along the way, and that the entire herd protects the young, allowing them to explore fearlessly.

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A post shared by ZoomieZoo (@lqzoomiezoo)

The Journey of Baby Elephants

According to Elephant Jungle Sanctuary, the journey of an elephant starts with a remarkable biological process and continues through a childhood of learning and social development. Baby elephants endure the longest pregnancy in the animal kingdom—about 22 months—to arrive fully developed. After birth, they grow quickly, nourished by rich mother’s milk packed with fat and protein, essential for building muscles and keeping pace with the herd.

Newborn calves are born without trunk coordination, which is one of their biggest challenges. A baby elephant must learn to use its trunk over months, training more than 40,000 muscles to grasp food, spray water, and communicate. Quirky behaviors like trunk-swinging, trunk-sucking, and mud-bathing are all part of learning.

Social Bonds and Learning

Baby elephants learn by observing older herd members. They remain close to their mothers, walking beside or under them for protection while gradually picking up important survival skills. The herd practices “allomothering,” where other females act as caregivers, soothing, protecting, and teaching the young calves. This social learning is critical for emotional and physical development.


Dietary habits also shape their growth. Calves primarily feed on mother’s milk for about two years and gradually experiment with solid food. They even taste the food of other elephants and engage in coprophagy—eating fresh elephant dung—to build a healthy gut microbiome.

Beyond their playful antics, baby elephants also have an impressive memory from an early age. Studies show that even young calves can recognize family members, remember safe paths, and quickly learn from both mistakes and successes. This remarkable intelligence, combined with their strong social bonds, ensures that each calf grows into an adult capable of navigating complex environments and protecting the herd. Observing these early skills offers a reminder that curiosity and learning are lifelong processes, and that even small moments of exploration in childhood lay the foundation for resilience and adaptability later in life.