Recently, Bollywood actors Janhvi Kapoor, Varun Dhawan, and Tiger Shroff posted identical messages on social media opposing the Supreme Court’s directive to remove stray dogs from Delhi-NCR streets. Their words described strays as “heartbeats” of the city, praising their companionship and presence.
At first glance, this appears to come from a place of kindness. But looking closer reveals a sense of hypocrisy. The same celebrities openly share their food preferences, with Janhvi Kapoor enjoying seafood, Varun Dhawan favouring mutton, and Tiger Shroff choosing chicken. The animals they consume are no less sentient than the dogs they now defend.
These stars also live in gated communities, far from the realities faced by people who encounter stray dogs daily. Bites, road accidents, and safety fears are common for working-class residents, street vendors, and schoolchildren. It is easier to speak of compassion when one is shielded from such dangers.
No one is advocating cruelty toward animals, but framing the removal of aggressive or unvaccinated dogs from crowded areas as an “attack on the voiceless” overlooks the struggles of sanitation workers, rickshaw pullers, and slum children who suffer most from stray attacks.
This selective concern seems more like a fashionable stance than genuine empathy. True compassion would give equal importance to the lives of poor humans whose safety and wellbeing are also at risk.
