An FIR has been filed against Filmmaker Mani Ratnam’s Firm as they have been accused of animal cruelty that took place on a shoot location. The Animal Welfare Board of India (AWBI) has requested an investigation regarding the death of a horse that took place during the shooting of the upcoming Tamil historical drama “Ponniyin Selvan”. PETA India recently filed a complaint against the filmmaker for forcing exhausted horses to shoot until they drop dead.
According to a PTI report, a horse reportedly passed away on the sets of Mani Ratnam’s Ponniyin Selvan, after which they had to face a complaint from People for Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA). On 18 August, PETA filed a complaint against Mani Ratnam and the owner of the horse stating that a horse died during the shooting of the movie at a private land near a film studio on 11 August. Based on the complaint, a case was registered against the management of production house ‘Madras Talkies’ and the owner of the horse under the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (PCA) Act and IPC. The post-mortem was then conducted by a veterinarian whose report is still awaited. The police official associated with Abdullapurmet police station explained that the police were waiting for the results that were yet to arrive from the veterinarian. The AWBI asked the Hyderabad District Collector and the Telangana State Animal Welfare Board to examine the situation after the complaint from PETA was registered. As per the reports they received from the whistle-blowers, it was reported that on the set of Mani Ratnam’s upcoming film, many horses were used for hours nonstop during shooting resulting in animals getting dehydrated.
