26/06/2026

LYFE FRIDAY | JUNE 26, 2026

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o Initiative sees A-list actors spearheading campaign backed by Peta India Trumpeting for end of elephant use in Indian films

B OLLYWOOD stars are campaigning to end the use of elephants in Indian films, saying life-size robot replicas and artificial intelligence (AI)-generated images do the job without cruelty. Top directors, producers and actors have backed the campaign by animal rights group Peta India, which this month highlighted how the rise of slick AI images provide even less reason to use real animals. “Elephants shouldn’t suffer for our entertainment. With today’s technology, we can bring elephants to life beautifully through CGI (computer-generated imagery) and mechanical artistry, without confinement or cruelty,” said A-list actor and producer John Abraham, describing why he and more than two dozen stars were supporting the campaign. There are fewer than 50,000 Asian elephants in the wild, according to the World Wildlife Fund – the majority in India, with others in Sri Lanka and Southeast Asia. There are more than 2,600 captive elephants in India, according to environment ministry estimates. They are used for tourism, entertainment and in temples. Peta told AFP captive elephants IN an era dominated by hyper violent blockbusters and larger-than life action spectacles, Indian filmmaker Imtiaz Ali believes young audiences are searching for something deeper – love that lasts. The director behind cult romantic dramas such as Jab We Met , Rockstar and Love Aaj Kal said while Gen Z may be growing up in a world of seemingly endless choice that has only intensified their desire for meaningful connection. “I think young people... are more desperate to find something that they can hold on to for longer – forever perhaps,” Imtiaz , 54, said in an interview ahead of the recent release of his latest romance film Main Vaapas Aaunga. “Everything is so accessible that almost everything has no value. “So, I feel this is the right time to have a story of enduring love,” he said.

Dia (centre) has helped promote the use of robotic elephants, as seen here at an event with schoolchildren in Mumbai in 2023.

are “separated from their families, kept near-constantly chained and are controlled with weapons”. India’s Animal Welfare Board must give permission for elephants to be used in films. The number of real elephants being used has dropped dramatically since its 2021 order that it was “advisable” that special effects or animatronics be prioritised “to prevent unnecessary pain and suffering to animals”. AI-generated images, showcased in a social media campaign this month, provide increasingly lifelike images. “Elephants are highly intelligent, emotional animals who require living free in lush jungle homes for their mental and physical wellbeing. “In contrast, elephants used in films, shows and advertisements face extreme loneliness and severe cruelties,” it said. Campaigners point to the use of CGI by Richie Mehta in the 2024 series Poacher , a Malayalam ‘Living free’ Now Peta highlighting campaigners are how The film, which title means “I will return”, tells the story of a romance that survives nearly eight decades, inspired by real-life accounts from families affected by the 1947 partition of India and Pakistan. Imtiaz said the idea emerged after hearing of two men, aged 91 and 95, who travelled to the India Pakistan border hoping to visit the villages where they had spent their childhoods before the subcontinent was divided at the end of British rule. The sectarian bloodshed that accompanied the partition killed hundreds of thousands of people and left many families divided. “Almost everything you will see in Main Vaapas Aaunga is taken from somebody’s life,” he said, calling the film a “collection of stories of love”. Hit action films such as Animal , Dhurandhar and the Pushpa series have helped cement the dominance

flashing lights, thumping drums and ear-splitting music. It has donated more than 25 life-size robot elephants – made of fibreglass and rubber – to temples across India. The models are motorised, so that they flap their ears, move tails and even spray water from rubber trunks. In May, Peta and Shriya Saran – one of the stars of 2022 hit RRR , which won the Oscar for best original song – gifted one to a Hindu temple in Kanpur, in the northern state of Uttar Pradesh. Many followers of the elephant headed Hindu deity Ganesh see the animals as sacred and they have traditionally played an important role in ceremonies. Shriya said the mechanical version would “allow the temple to continue age-old traditions while allowing elephants, earthly representatives of Lord Ganesha, to thrive in their natural habitats”. Other Bollywood names, on a list of more than two dozen stars, include Richa Chadha, Farah Khan and Dia Mirza. “Good cinema requires empathy. We can tell wonderful stories on screen without exploiting animals,” said actress Pooja Bhatt. characters navigating questions of love and commitment. Imtiaz praised Diljit’s ability to bring warmth and restraint to emotionally complex scenes, particularly opposite Naseeruddin’s character who struggles with Alzheimer’s disease. For Ali, the film’s broader message transcends romance. “It’s about how love can be the music in your heart that keeps you alive through all tragedies. A love that survives 78 years without meeting or even speaking to the person you love,” he said. Imtiaz expressed hopes beneath the appetite for action, viewers still seek a deeper meaning. In one scene, a young person “wonders whether... that kind of love was possible only in the old times. “It is very difficult for the younger generation to find that kind of love. They are yearning for it, they seek it in films,” he said. – AFP

Animal rights groups are promoting the use of robotic elephants instead of real animals in religious festivals in Hindu temples, as well as in Bollywood. – PICS FROM AFP

Last month, the Malayalam language film Kattalan – about ivory-smuggling gangsters – featured real elephants, producers told Indian media. Empathy Peta has long campaigned for the end of elephants in Hindu temple ceremonies, where the animals are paraded through packed crowds with

clothing company Ramraj Cotton. Other high-profile hits who used CGI for elephants include 2020 historical action movie Tanhaji: The Unsung Warrior and the 2006 superhero film Krrish .

language crime drama about ivory smuggling and to a robotic elephant with flapping ears used in a dance routine for an advertisement by Bollywood’s Imtiaz Ali bets on Gen Z thirst for love That compares with times past when movies, such as 1971 hit Haathi Mere Saathi used multiple real elephants – alongside tigers and lions – in dance scenes.

Imtiaz making coffee during an interview in Mumbai. – AFPPIC

‘The music in your heart’ Ali argued successful films are defined less by genre than by the conviction behind them. “What makes one film a large film? It’s the heart of the maker.” Main Vaapas Aaunga features Punjabi superstar Diljit Dosanjh alongside veteran actor Naseeruddin Shah, with Vedang Raina and Sharvari Wagh portraying younger

of violent action cinema in Indian cinema. All three films celebrate highly dominant male protagonists who project raw power, aggression and emotional intensity. But Imtiaz rejects the notion audiences only want blood and gore. “The kind of film that works... is a good film, a popular film, a film that people enjoy,” he said.