Animal Rights Awareness Video

For about two years, Manya in Grade 11, has been working with ‘There For U’ (TFU). The foundation's priority has been to aid sick animals around the city of Ludhiana, in Punjab and to accommodate transportation. This has been done by raising funds and starting an initiative called ‘Paw Mobile’, to transport sick and injured animals to veterinarians and shelters. Part of the operations is having a helpline for concerned people to contact the TFU team and receive support. To increase awareness and to pre-empt certain issues, she has put together an informational video. We contacted Manya, to find out more about the issues and how people can contribute to make them better.

Lately, Manya has been receiving more frequent calls on her foundation’s helpline, reporting cases of animal abuse. “I do not think that cases of animal violence have increased, they have always been prevalent”, says Manya. “Whether it is the butcher houses or the animal farm, the voiceless have been long tortured. The shift I observe is in the ones who wish to help”, says Manya, who has noticed that more people are coming forward to speak up against the violence.

To increase awareness about animal violence, and how people can help the animals without putting themselves at any risk, Manya decided to make the newly released video. The positive change in people’s attitudes and behaviour is something that the TFU foundation wanted to capture and support. The video is divided into three parts. The first declare animal rights against any ill-treatment, as per the ‘Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act’ of 1960. The second section states the laws laid down by the Constitution of India to protect citizens if they wish to help an animal. Third section systematically describes five simple and legal steps one can take to report any person inflicting violence towards animals.

Manya states that the video is for both adults and youth. Adults, so that they acknowledge that the issues are just as important as the economic growth of the country) and young people, so that they can grow up to be conscientious individuals and bring the desired change.  In short, Manya believes that knowledge is the most powerful tool to drive change. “Through this video me and my team of Young Positivists hope to reach as many as possible to sensitise them towards this issue, equip them with the know-how and encourage them to speak up for the voiceless”, says Manya, hoping that it results in transforming ignorance and neglect, to empathy and action. 

In the future, Manya hopes to collaborate with other organisations and institutions to spread the message and teach as many people as possible about animal rights. To further spread the word of the TFU, Manya would like to write informative articles on well-established and known platforms, and that way enlisting more volunteers and youths in the movement against animal violence.

The video that is getting good reviews, can be found on TFU’s Instagram account. To learn more about the organisation and its activities, visit the TFU website.