To celebrate her work in support of an animal-friendly fashion industry and her advocacy for dogs and cats in need, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) India has named Bollywood star Alia Bhatt its 2021 Person of the Year.
This year, Bhatt invested in Phool, the company behind Fleather, a vegan leather made from discarded temple flowers. Her vegan kidswear line, Ed-a-Mamma, also won a 2021 PETA India fashion award for helping to nurture kids’ love for animals and nature. She also previously starred in a pro-adoption PETA India campaign to help cats and dogs and has used her platform to call for stronger animal protection laws.
“Alia Bhatt is not only helping to advance vegan fashion but also encouraging the next generation to be kind to animals,” says PETA India Director of Celebrity and Public Relations Sachin Bangera.
“Alia doesn’t hesitate to speak up, whether she’s rallying her fans to adopt a dog or cat or calling for action on crimes against animals.”
Past recipients of PETA India’s Person of the Year Award include Dr Shashi Tharoor, for supporting Compassionate Citizen, PETA India’s humane education programme for children, as well as other education on animal protection; former Supreme Court Justice KS Panicker Radhakrishnan, for the landmark judgement against the use of bulls in performances; cricketer Virat Kohli, for calling for the release of an abused elephant and stronger penalties for animal abusers; comedian Kapil Sharma, for encouraging people to adopt dogs; and actors John Abraham, Anushka Sharma, Sunny Leone, R Madhavan, Jacqueline Fernandez, Hema Malini, and Sonam Kapoor Ahuja, for helping animals in various kind ways.
