Born into a legendary lineage and hailed as one of Ranthambore's most iconic tigresses, Arrowhead carried forward the majestic legacy of her grandmother, Machli -- the most photographed tiger in the world.

A fierce hunter, devoted mother, and a symbol of strength, Arrowhead recently passed away at the age of 11 after a prolonged battle with bone cancer. As the forest mourns her loss, this feature revisits her extraordinary life through the eyes of renowned wildlife filmmakers and naturalists, who share rare anecdotes and memories of a tigress who was as graceful as she was formidable.

Salim Ali, a prominent naturalist from Ranthambore, has spent many years tracking the big cats in the jungles, and continues to do so even today. Among the many beautiful tigers that he has seen, observed, and grown to love was Arrowhead.

Recalling his fond memories of Rathambore's last reigning queen, Salim said, "Arrowhead is the daughter of Krishna (T-19) and the granddaughter of Machali. She was born in 2014. Arrowhead had two siblings -- sister Lightning and brother Pacmam. While Lightning was translocated to another park, Pacman was killed by another male tiger. Arrowhead continued to live in Ranthambore and gave birth to four litters during her lifespan, of which only two litters survived."

Shivang Mehta, one of India's renowned wildlife filmmakers, saw Arrowhead grow from a cub to a feisty adult tigress. Shivang has also written about Arrowhead in a book on tigers he authored, called 'A Decade With Tigers'.

Post her passing away, Shivang recalled beautiful memories of Arrowhead through a series of pictures and a long post that he shared on his social media.

"She was a little 60-day-old stripped ball in the summers of 2014 and was hidden in the thickets of Jhalra. It was nearly 60 hours of wait for me to catch her first glimpse as I saw her tiny paws emerge out of the Bada Gate as she tiptoed the track along with her legendary mother T19," wrote Shivang in his Instagram post.

The story behind the name 'Arrowhead'

For the unversed, tigers have official names that are given to them by the forest officials. However, some tigers also have common names that are given by prominent wildlifers including filmmakers, naturalists, and safari drivers.

Among them was late wildlife photographer Aditya 'Dicky' Singh, who named her 'Arrowhead'. "Her name was kept by Dicky. On her forehead, there were stripe marks that looked like two arrows. That is from where Dicky kept her name as Arrowhead," said Salim.

Although Arrowhead is a name that was given by Aditya, Shivang also had a name for her -- Machali Junior. "She had grown up a bit and her stripes were more distinct. One mark which caught my attention was a fork mark on her left flank. A fork mark that reminded me of her legendary grandmother Machali and I instantly called her Machali Junior," he wrote in his post.

While feasting on a kill alongside her mother and siblings

Back in January 2015, Shivang was on a safari in Ranthambore on a rainy day in winter, when he saw a movement in the tall grasses, only to see a drenched Arrowhead walking out of the grass. "While looking through the viewfinder I could make out the entire family is on a kill as her face and whiskers had blood all over," read an excerpt from his book where he spoke about Arrowhead as a cub.

When he visited the same area the next day. He mentioned in his book that when he arrived at the same spot again, he again saw Arrowhead but this time with her brother Pacman, which meant that "Krishna was feeding on a big kill - may be a sambhar or a fully grown cheetal" and that Krishna along with her three cubs, were "taking a long time to finish off the kill."

Legacy of Queens-The inherited kingdom of Arrowhead

Arrowhead's territory first belonged to her grandmother, Machali, who was thrown out by her daughter (and Arrowhead's mother), Krishna. Later, Arrowhead pushed her mother out of the territory and started her reign, until Arrowhead's daughter, Riddhi, took over the area. One of the prominent areas where Arrowhead would often be sighted was near the lake area, which included Padam Talab and Rajbagh Palace.

"The Padam Lake area was previously where her mother, Krishna, would reign. Arrowhead pushed her mother out and took over the territory of her mother. Since she used to live near the lake, Arrowhead had too many frequent encounters with crocodiles and turtles," recalled Salim.

Ranthambore's only second-ever tiger known to make a kill in water

Just like her grandmother, Machali, Arrowhead was also skilled in aquatic combat. She was known to hunt in the water. Salim claimed that she was the only tigress after Machali who was capable of making a kill in the water.

"She was the one who, after 16 years, started hunting in the lake. She is only the second, after Machali, to be able to hunt in the waters (in Ranthambore). You would see her making a kill of a Sambhar in the water as well," he said.

When Arrowhead was nearly drowned by crocodiles

Just a few days before Arrowhead breathed her last and was cremated by the forest department, she was seen killing a crocodile, despite her illness and her weak body. While many were left astonished, those who had followed the tigress for many years were not surprised; she was known to kill crocodiles and turtles.

But once, there was an episode when she was nearly drowned in water by crocodiles. Reflecting on the incident, Salim said, "A few years ago, she once charged at a crocodile inside the water. However, to her surprise, she was attacked by three to four crocodiles, who almost drowned her in the water. She was inside the water for around 10 seconds. I think when her legs touched the ground, that is when she jumped out of the water and came back to the ground." He claimed that after this episode and sustaining injuries, is when Arrowhead's health started to go downhill.