PETA activists bare all to support Shilpa in racism fight

LONDON: Wearing next to nothing, numerous animal activists with leopard spots painted on their body held a demonstration on Thursday urging people to take a stand against the alleged bullying of animal advocate Shilpa Shetty on a British reality TV show.

Activists of People for Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) held up placards reading 'Stop Big Brother Circus Cruelty - Vote for Shilpa' at the Covent Garden.

31-year-old Shilpa, a staunch supporter of the PETA's campaign against bullying and cruelty to animals, is allegedly the target of racist attacks by fellow contestants of 'Celebrity Big Brother'.

"When Shilpa Shetty joined PETA to speak up against cruelty to animals in circuses, she had no idea she would eventually be living in the midst of one," PETA Europe supporter Lucy Groom said.

"We urge viewers to stop Big Brother circus cruelty by voting for Shilpa, our friend and a defender of animals," she said.

Shilpa posed for one of PETA's most high-profile ad campaigns in India, an anti-circus advertisement in which she crouched behind the bars of a cage, dressed in a form-fitting tiger-striped body suit, with the tagline 'Beaten, Lonely and Abused - Boycott the Circus'.