Forest dept issues notice to Surat mobile shop owner who made ‘reel’ using elephant to promote product

The purported video shows a man holding a mobile phone and standing on the main road below a flyover, along with a woman, and he is heard saying that the phone can withstand the heaviest of weights. The camera then pans to the elephant with a mahout seated on its back. The animal is then made to walk on a red carpet on which the phone is placed.

“This elephant weighs 4-5 tonnes and now we will see when it walks on this phone,” the man is heard saying. After two takes, the elephant is seen stepping on what looks like a mobile phone placed on the carpet. The man then restarts the phone and talks about its “durability”.

Talking to The Indian Express, Nitin Vanmora, Forest Officer, Surat Range, said, “We called the mobile phone owner Chandrakant Raja, but he did not answer. We sent our team with a notice to his shop, and told his staff to inform him to be present at the Surat forest department office on Saturday to explain why he did a stunt using a wildlife animal, an adult elephant. Raja did not turn up at the forest office till Saturday afternoon.”

He added, “We will try and identify the animal’s owner. After taking their statements in detail, we will decide the next course of action. He used elephants to promote mobile phones and increase followers on social media, which cannot be tolerated. The mobile phone was intact, and nothing happened to the elephant. If mobile phone instrument had got shattered, glass particles would have entered his feet, causing great pain to the animal.”

The official further added that such activities will not be entertained, and strict action will be taken if anybody indulges in such acts.

Raja was unavailable for comment.