Mowgli/Relationships

The relationships of Mowgli from The Jungle Book.

Bagheera
Mowgli and Bagheera had a great friendship until Bagheera had to take Mowgli to the Man-Village. Despite this, Bagheera and Mowgli are still great friends. During his time with the wolf pack, Bagheera mentioned that he and Mowgli often went on walks throughout the jungle together, indicating their close bond.

In Rudyard Kipling's The Jungle Book, Bagheera was the one who found Mowgli and his pet wolf cub Grey Brother and took them to be raised by a wolf pack family so as to be safe from Shere Khan. Mowgli and Bagheera have a great friendship as Mowgli grew older and stronger. Bagheera helped Mowgli through many dangers. He was finally seen continuing his life in the jungle with Mowgli and Kitty.

In the 2016 version of The Jungle Book, Bagheera serves as Mowgli's mentor and protector, teaching him the ways of the jungle and how to survive. Bagheera is shown to be very fond of Mowgli, as he acknowledges how special he is when Baloo mentions his talents. He is stern and believes in enforcing what Mowgli has learned in the wolf pack, angrily stating that Mowgli's inventing of tools has no place in the jungle. This changes later on, and Bagheera learns to let Mowgli be himself. He is also fiercely protective of Mowgli if the boy is in danger, as he fought Shere Khan twice to allow Mowgli to escape.

Baloo
Baloo is Mowgli's best friend and father figure. Mowgli first met Baloo and thought of him as an enemy not an ally. Baloo and Mowgli soon became best friends and Baloo officially adopted Mowgli as his bear cub. Once Baloo realized Shere Khan was on the hunt for Mowgli, he promised Bagheera he will take Mowgli back to the man village although he didn't want to. Mowgli soon thought Baloo had betrayed him and ran off. Once Mowgli encountered Shere Khan, Baloo risked his life to save him. Baloo and Mowgli once again became friends with Mowgli realizing Baloo only wanted the best for his cub.

In affection, Mowgli often refers to Baloo as "Papa Bear" while Baloo usually refers to Mowgli by "Little Britches".

In Rudyard Kipling's The Jungle Book, Baloo was found as a brown bear cub stuck in a narrow hole of an empty log until a 5-year-old Mowgli found and saved him. Mowgli and the cub became close friends after that along with Mowgli's pet wolf cub. Grey Brother. Baloo was more of a childhood companion and best friend of Mowgli's rather than a teacher of the jungle or a father-figure to him. He helped Mowgli throughout many dangers but in the end, he was badly wounded after being shot by British soldiers. Luckily, Mowgli found Dr. Julius Plumford who was able to cure and save him. Then, Baloo continued his life in the jungle with Mowgli and Kitty in the end.

In the 2016 film, Mowgli's relationship with Baloo is somewhat different. Baloo originally rescues Mowgli from Kaa only so that Baloo can con him into getting food for the bear. However, as they spend more and more time together, they bond and become the best of friends. Unlike Bagheera, Baloo is more supportive of Mowgli's inventive ways, and after learning what he is capable of, readily helps him. Baloo also is like Bagheera, incredibly protective of Mowgli, willing to overcome his fear of heights and fight Shere Khan to protect the man-cub.

Shanti
Shanti is the very reason Mowgli went into the Man Village. Shanti acts as if she can't stand Mowgli at times due to his prankster personality, but deep down she really has strong feelings for him just as he has feelings for her. In one scene in The Jungle Book 2, when Mowgli gets in trouble, he blames Shanti and won't speak to her. When Shanti found out that Mowgli assigned Baloo to scare her if she showed up (he really did this to cover up his real feelings for her, which is that he missed her) she was heartbroken. After the events of The Jungle Book 2, Mowgli and Shanti started a romantic relationship.

Katherine Brydon
Kitty appears in the live-action film Rudyard Kipling's The Jungle Book. She is Mowgli's childhood friend, and love interest.

Kitty met Mowgli when she and her father, Colonel Geoffrey Brydon, move to India as part of the colonel's new command posting. The two become good friends, and she gives Mowgli a bracelet that belonged to her mother. Mowgli is soon separated from man's world, and Kitty is deeply saddened when she thinks Mowgli is dead. The two are reunited years later, and find themselves falling in love while Mowgli relearns the ways of man from her. Kitty is later used as a hostage by Captain Boone and his henchmen to force Mowgli to take them to a treasure. Mowgli manages to defeat the villains and ensure Kitty's safety, after which they officially begin a relationship.

Kaa
Kaa and Mowgli are complete enemies. Kaa's main goal through the film is to eat Mowgli and after three attempts, he still failed. However, he doesn't show much intimidation towards Kaa though he tries to keep distance from the snake's eyes, knowing its power after their first encounter. Kaa views Mowgli as food only but becomes frustrated after his many escapes viewing him as not only lunch, but a despised nemesis as well.

In Rudyard Kipling's The Jungle Book, Kaa served more as guardian of treasure of King Louie's in Monkey City than an antagonist. He was close to killing Mowgli until he was wounded by Mowgli's dagger and gave up the fight. He is seen at the end successfully killing Mowgli's enemy Captain Boone.

In the 2016 version of The Jungle Book, Kaa is a female, instead of male. However, she is still interested in eating Mowgli, like her previous male incarnation in the 1967 film. She, also like her previous incarnation, hypnotizes him and shows him visions of his past. Had it not been for Baloo's timely arrival, she would have readily devoured him. She is not seen again afterwards, so it is unknown how it affects Mowgli from then on.

Shere Khan
Shere Khan is Mowgli's arch-nemesis and Shere Khan wants nothing more than to kill Mowgli. In the first film, due to Shere Khan's hatred towards man, he decided to eliminate Mowgli before he was old enough to gain the ability to use man's guns and fire. Shere Khan tried to kill Mowgli, but due to the fearless Baloo and the vultures, Shere Khan's plans were thwarted. In The Jungle Book 2, Shere Khan seeks revenge on Mowgli for humiliating him, but was thwarted again.

Mowgli and Shere Khan had a very different relationship in Rudyard Kipling's The Jungle Book. Shere Khan was the one who caused Mowgli's separation from man's world, but the tiger never tries to kill him. The two meet for the first time at the film's end, where Shere Khan accepts Mowgli as a creature of the jungle.

In the 2016 version of The Jungle Book, Shere Khan's hatred of Mowgli takes a darker, more sinister turn. Shere Khan killed Mowgli's father while they travelled through the Jungle, leaving the infant Mowgli an orphan. The tiger bears the burn scars from a flaming torch upon his face from that encounter and afterwards, a permanent hatred of man. Years later, Shere Khan, upon realizing the boy survived his attack, immediately states that man is forbidden in the jungle, and demands that Akela and the Seeonee wolf pack hand him over to him. Shere Khan also kills Akela for the pack's defiance of his wishes when the man-cub escapes him and takes over the pack to draw Mowgli out so that the tiger can finish what he started years ago. When Mowgli finally faces Shere Khan, the tiger stops at nothing to try and kill him in revenge, defeating his wolf family, Baloo and Bagheera to pursue him. Mowgli uses this obsessive hate to his advantage to lure Shere Khan into a trap and kill him, tricking him into leaping onto a dead tree branch that cannot hold his weight and plummeting to his death in the raging forest fire below.

William Boone
Captain Boone only appears in the live-action film. He is Mowgli's nemesis.

Boone and Mowgli get off to a bad start when Mowgli pushes him into a river on their first meeting (Mowgli has mistaken his advances on Kitty as an attempt to hurt her). Boone later has Mowgli arrested when the jungle boy is caught in the city, and has his men beat him continuously to get information about a jeweled dagger that was in his possession. Boone later comes to see Mowgli as a rival for Kitty's affection, and also threatens to hunt him down when Mowgli refuses to take him to the ruined city where he found the jeweled dagger, along with other treasure. Boone finally resorts to kidnapping Kitty (who by now has rejected him) to force Mowgli to take him and his men to the treasure. Mowgli and Boone have a final battle in the treasure room, which Mowgli wins. Mowgli than takes Kitty and leaves Boone, and the captain is attacked and killed by Kaa soon after.