Monkey Business!

This time with mobile phone

Mysore/Mysuru: The Kannada proverb ‘Mangana Kaili Manikya’ which translates to ‘Ruby in a monkey’s hand,’ takes on a modern twist with the advent of mobile phones.

This became all too real when a monkey snatched a woman’s purse containing a mobile phone and other belongings from a tourist visiting Chamundi Hill. The incident left the tourist family from Hassan in a state of suspense for half an hour as the monkey held onto the cell phone.

The family was about to climb the steps to Chamundi Hill when a monkey snatched the purse. The monkey pat climbed a tree and started dropping money and other articles in the purse, only to keep the cell phone with it.

The monkey eventually dropped the purse but stubbornly clung to the cell phone, leaping from branch to branch, much to the frustration of the anxious family. Worried about the loss of a phone worth several thousand rupees, the tourist tried enticing the monkey with bananas and biscuits, to no avail. Despite attempts to lure it away, the monkey remained fixated on the phone.

In a bid to coax the monkey into releasing the device, calls were made to the cell phone, hoping the ringtone would startle it into dropping the phone. However, the curious monkey only seemed intrigued by the sound, examining the device from all angles.

After a tense 30 minutes, the monkey finally relinquished its grip on the phone, dropping it from the tree and causing damage to the screen. Despite the mishap, the relieved tourist resumed their climb up the Hill.