When Aravind first saw the 3.5-meter-tall elephant waving its trunk at the Irinjadappilly Sree Krishna Temple in Thrissur, Kerala, he couldn’t belie

PETA is building robot elephants for Hindu temples

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2024-09-30 12:30:02

When Aravind first saw the 3.5-meter-tall elephant waving its trunk at the Irinjadappilly Sree Krishna Temple in Thrissur, Kerala, he couldn’t believe that he was looking at a robot. “He had garlands around his neck, all the bells and decorations,” the 30-year-old sweet shop owner told Rest of World. “And a pooja [Hindu prayer ceremony] was carried out in front of him. It was like any real temple elephant we’re used to seeing.”

The robot elephant, named Raman, was gifted to the temple in 2023 by PETA India and actress Parvathy Thiruvothu. The animatronic, which cost almost $6,000 to build, is part of a limited campaign by PETA and another animal rights organization, Voices for Asian Elephants, to demonstrate how robot elephants can replace real ones, minimizing cruelty to animals and risks for humans.

“If you visit the temple, people are very happy [with the elephant],” Aravind said. “The kids are reacting in the same way they would seeing a real elephant — they are overjoyed and taking photos with him.”