Malaika Arora sizzles in new PETA campaign to help Mumbai's horses

Actor, dancer, model and India's Got Talent judge Malaika Arora – wearing little more than a bikini – is teaming up with People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) India to star in a new campaign calling for an end to horse-drawn carriage rides, a cause close to her heart. Shot by ace photographer Abhay Singh and used with permission from Maxim India, the print ad features Malaika standing with a horse beside the words "Compassion Is Beautiful – Say No to Horse-Drawn Carriage Rides".

The ad can be viewed and downloaded https://www.petaindia.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/Malaika-Arora-ad-1.jpghere.

"I'm adding my voice to PETA's to ask kind people everywhere to think again before supporting an industry that subjects intelligent horses to slavery", says Arora. "By choosing other forms of transportation, everyone has the power to spare horses the misery of being forced to work past the point of exhaustion."

PETA India was an intervener in the Bombay High Court matter which resulted in the directive (dated 8 June 2015) that the Victorias be phased out of Mumbai within a year. In April, however, the Supreme Court allowed for horse-drawn carriages to ply for the following six months or until a review petition is finally decided by the Bombay High Court, whichever comes first. The Supreme Court also called for the Maharashtra state government to present its plan for the rehabilitation of the carriage owners and drivers. PETA India was represented in the Supreme Court.

PETA India – whose motto reads, in part, that "animals are not ours to use for entertainment" – has documented the shocking abuse horses endure in Mumbai. Inspections have revealed that horses – including those who are injured, sick or severely malnourished – are forced to pull heavy carriages and stand amidst their own waste in filthy, decrepit unlicenced stables. They are also routinely forced to haul more passengers than the legal limit allows in all weather extremes, are often lame or have permanent leg damage, and are frequently denied adequate rest, food, water and veterinary care.

This is not the first time that Arora has lent her support to PETA. Previously, she appeared in a campaign dressed as a bird to speak out against the cruelty in circuses.