Ellie, Asia’s first life-sized animatronic elephant, unveiled in Bengaluru

Asia's first hyper-realistic animatronic elephant, Ellie, educates students on animal welfare and urges kindness towards animals.

Asia’s first hyper-realistic life-sized animatronic elephant, Ellie, was unveiled at St. Joseph’s School, captivating students while delivering a message on animal welfare.

Voiced by actor and environmental activist Dia Mirza and launched by People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) India, Ellie is set to visit schools across Bengaluru to educate children about the suffering real elephants endure in captivity.

Introducing herself as a 12-year-old elephant, Ellie engaged with students and shared insights into the emotional and physical toll on animals used in circuses, rides and performances. Urging the students to take a stand against animal exploitation, she requested that they avoid visiting circuses that use animals and riding elephants or any other animals, and treat them with the kindness and respect they deserve.

Students asked Meenakshi Narang, senior education coordinator at PETA India, how they could help animals. “You can’t do it alone, but if you ever come across such situations, you can inform an animal NGO. You can also reach out to PETA, we are always ready to help animals,” she said.

The students took part in a pledge vowing to be compassionate and kind towards humans as well as animals.

“It was a nice experience meeting Ellie. We learned that we should not hurt animals, we should not make them carry us on their backs, and we should not cage them. We should be kind to all animals,” said Ayan Digambar, a fourth-grade student at the school. The programme was attended by the school principal Fr. Rohan D’Almeida and vice principal Sr. Sheena Joseph among others.