My name is Plai Bang. I was taken from my mother when I was just two years old and put to work. Each day, I walked up and down the beach outside a hotel, stopping only to pose for photographs and to be fed watermelon and bananas.
By the time I was six, I was no longer small enough to be considered cute, and I was moved to a riding camp. There, I spent my days carrying tourists in a heavy metal chair. It was during this time that I learned how to beg for food. I discovered that if I made soft chirping sounds and behaved sweetly, people would feed me—and I admit, I still do this sometimes when I’m feeling cheeky.
As I grew older, I felt an overwhelming sense of emptiness from being separated from my mother. Around this time, I entered musth, a natural phase similar to puberty that only male elephants experience. During musth, we can become unpredictable and aggressive for long periods. I began challenging other elephants, and one day I was involved in a serious fight that injured two of my companions.
Because of my behaviour, I was chained for five long years. It was a deeply distressing time. I became frustrated, unhappy, and unpredictable, often lashing out and throwing objects. I was under constant stress, and I spent much of my day swinging my head—a behaviour commonly seen in elephants experiencing severe emotional distress.
Eventually, Maew and the team at Samui Elephant Haven decided to give me a chance at a different life. Noi became my mahout, and his patience, consistency, and calm presence have helped me begin to heal. He has taught me trust, and I know he genuinely cares for me. Over time, I have become more settled. While I still sway on some days, I am far more relaxed and stable than I once was.
Today, I live in a large, specially designed enclosure of nearly two acres. To keep both me and others safe, the team is working to develop almost half a kilometre of steel-reinforced concrete pillars—an essential but costly part of my care. I am now 37 years old and have distinctive tusks that cross at the tips, a feature that makes me easy to recognise.
