The "Siberian Mowgli" has been found living in the Russian wilderness and he's pretty happy where he is.
For the first time in 16 years, Odzhan, or the "Siberian Mowgli" spoke to people living near the town of Belokurikha this week. He was found by locals at the end of the summer as his parents had left him alone in May and he sought help in a nearby village, the Siberian Times reports.
Yet the boy doesn't feel he was in trouble. In fact he enjoys his life in the Altai wilderness and doesn't want to return to conventional city life.
The Russian media has named the boy "forest boy" or the "Siberian Mowgli" after the character from The Jungle Book.
According to Roman Fomin, a local prosecutor who spoke to AFP, a local woman brought the boy to authorities, fearing that he may need help through the winter, but the young man went back to his forest hiding place after.
Out of a fear that he would have to spend his winter alone in the forest, officials from Fomin's office appealed in court to have his identification documents re-established so the man can seek state support.
"I am not sure if he needs all this attention," Fomin said. "He looked normal and healthy. He only spoke slowly, since he doesn't communicate as often as most people."
The young man has lived with his parents Alexander and Elena in a one-room hut and hasn't had formal schooling. His family rejected conventional society in the early 90s following the collapse of the Soviet regime. However the boy says he doesn't want to live near other people and prefers his small home.
"We are living well. This is the reality we have that we live here, and it's quite a good reality," he told The Siberian Times. "To move closer towards the city? For that we need to have a more cultural society, and of course to change how the cities smell and the pollution. I am happy here."
The family had gotten by by selling mushrooms or his father's paintings to the few people they encounter. The boy was taught to read and write through his parents and he learned to speak English through a dictionary. Odzhan only says that he wants to use his language skills with a native speaker.
"Of course, I need to have practice - if only I could have a chance to communicate with somebody who speaks no words on Russia - at least for a month," he said.
During his free time, the young man works on paintings or reading other books. The family says they took their son out of conventional society as they wanted him to be a "cleaver, kind and true man."
This article is copyrighted by Travelers Today, the travel news leader
