Peta India has termed the act "horrific cruelty" and said its team is working on the case
A Kolkata nightclub has come under fire from animal lovers and activists after visuals of customers petting a chained monkey on its premises went viral.
The nightclub, Toy Room, has denied any role in this and said some madaris performed outside the restaurant after they were refused permission for holding a show inside.
Among those who accused the nightclub of animal cruelty after the visuals went viral is popular actor Swastika Mukherjee. Sharing two short videos, which show people petting a chained monkey, the actor wrote in an instagram post, "I'm ashamed to say the least! It's disheartening to see what #toyroomkolkata did in the name of an act to stand out! Well, you sure did. For all the wrong reasons."
Terming the show an act of cruelty, the actor slammed the people who indulged in it. "And what is wrong with the people who has gone to party there and indulging in this cruel act ? No one stopped this right there and then?," she asked.
"And TOYROOM KOLKATA has barred people from tagging them. They think they can get away with this atrocity by disabling their social media handles ?!," the actor added, tagging the official handle of Trinamool Congress to flag the incident to the ruling party.
The visuals were widely shared across social media platforms, with many users tagging Kolkata Police and seeking urgent action against Toyroom, located in the city's posh Camac Street area.
Peta India, the country arm of the global animal rights body, termed the act "horrific cruelty" and said its team is working on the case.
In the face of fire, the restaurant came out with a statement, denying any role in this act of cruelty against animals.
"This is a message for everyone who are angry/hurt/upset over the videos of the monkeys. We would like to inform that Toyroom had no role to play in the hiring the monkeys or the madaris," it said in a statement posted on Instagram.
"The madaris or caregivers of the monkeys approached us at the club and we very politely refused them to do any kind of activities inside," the restaurant said. The madaris then moved to the ground level of the mall the restaurant is located in and started performing there.
The animals were not harmed and were with their caregivers throughout on the ground floor, Toyroom stressed.
"We care as much as everyone else for the animals and would never do such activities where they would be harmed or caged. We sincerely apologise if we've hurt anyone's sentiments or feelings unintentionally," it added.