Social media brings together fans of every kind. Be it TV shows, books, or even chocolate. In Kerala, there is a specific kind of online community of fans who have a unique interest – elephants. There are Facebook and Instagram pages dedicated to elephants. As many as 1,600 festivals take place in Kerala as temple rituals. These fans go to elephant festivals and post on the online community as if they visited concerts. And then there is the usual tirade of likes, shares, and comments.
Some of the most famous elephants in Kerala earn up to ₹1 crore within seven months. Of course, it is not the elephants who care about the money but the owners. It cannot be that elephants get rest if they are popular. They have to show up for the festivals constantly. Their fans would be disappointed otherwise. Even humans like Britney Spears have a tough time protesting their captivity. For elephants who cannot speak, it is bound to be tougher. They have been left with no other option apart from resorting to rampage.
Some elephants are driven to insanity due to overwork and cause a rampage that kills people. Around 300 elephants went on a rampage in 2018 alone. This does not faze the owners, nor does it faze the fans or devotees. They would still go to places with overworked elephants, even clicking photos of them.
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