FIR against Mani Ratnam’s firm

Mani Ratnam’s Ponniyin Selvan has faced trouble after a horse died on its set. A complaint was filed by a volunteer of PETA India on August 18 and a case was registered.

The horse died on August 11 on the set, and a whistle-blower informed People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA). PETA soon filed a complaint and based on the complaint, a case has been 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 police official attached to Abdullapurmet police station said a veterinarian conducted a post mortem and a report is still awaited.

According to PETA – “The Animal Welfare Board of India (AWBI) has sought an inquiry in connection with the death of a horse here allegedly during the shooting of filmmaker Mani Ratnam's Tamil historical drama Ponniyin Selvan.”

The statement further informs that the AWBI wrote to the Hyderabad District Collector and the Telangana State Animal Welfare Board to conduct an inquiry into the death. The whistle-blower even informed that since the horses were on the set for several hours, they were exhausted and dehydrated.

"In the age of computer-generated imagery (CGI), production companies have no excuse for forcing exhausted horses to play at war until one of them drops dead," said PETA India Chief Advocacy Officer Khushboo Gupta. "Compassionate, forward-thinking filmmakers would never dream of hauling sensitive animals to a chaotic movie set and forcing them to 'act'. PETA India is calling on director Mani Ratnam to cut the cruelty and switch to modern and humane CGI and other visual-effects technology," the PETA release further said.