An elephant painted bright pink for a controversial photoshoot has died in India.
Animal rights activists have accused Russian photographer Julia Buruleva of cruelty for making a painting of a 65-year-old woman named Chanchal “for the purpose of art”.
The incident occurred in Rajasthan’s Jaipur city in November – about three months before the animal’s death.
The pictures showed a model sitting on an elephant – both covered in paint from head to toe – sparking massive outrage on social media.
Since Chanchal’s death in February, Buruleva has faced a lot of criticism for using and portraying him as a “prop”.
One of the most liked comments under her post on Instagram read: “Let’s go to India and paint elephants so my Instagram can get some likes.
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“This is not art, this is pure animal abuse and therefore it is not right to glorify it.”
Others described the photoshoot as “really disappointing,” “immoral” and “cruel” and urged Buruleva to do better.
Another comment said: “Using organic colors does not justify the fact that you have to depict an animal completely on their body for your art.
“The skin of elephants is very porous and extremely sensitive.”
Addressing the backlash, Buruleva stressed that “there is a lot of misinformation spreading about this project.” pink Elephant.”
He added, “I don’t know who started it, but from what I’m told, the elephant recently passed away due to old age and that’s sad, but the photoshoot happened months ago and has nothing to do with it.”
Buruleva also shared a behind-the-scenes video in March, in which she said she used “absolutely safe” paint.
“For anyone worried about the elephant – we used organic, locally made paint, the same type the locals use for festivals, so it was absolutely safe for the animal,” she said.
Opening up more, she told LadBible that animal welfare concerns were legitimate, but also said: “A lot of the reactions are based on assumptions rather than what actually happened.
“I worked with an experienced owner whose elephant was clearly well cared for.”
Chanchal’s owner Shadiq Khan said he is no longer used for riding.
He told the local media that the elephant had died in February.
Animal rights groups are demanding the government impose stricter rules, especially in Rajasthan, where elephant riding is very popular among tourists.
The non-profit World Animal Protection warns that “the scale of abuse and the hidden suffering behind these outings is shocking to many.”
“This incident highlights the rampant abuse of captive elephants in Jaipur to cater to the whims and fancies of tourists,” said Gajendra Kumar Sharma, country director of the organisation.
“We are calling on the Indian authorities to strictly regulate all close encounters of captive elephants with all tourists, including foreign tourists, in Jaipur and across India.”
In India, wild Asian elephants typically live 55 to 70 years.
