Animal activist and Bollywood star, John Abraham, is planning on creating an animal sanctuary on the Maharashtra-Karnataka border to provide a home for elephants. The pachyderms are declining in number in India and PETA member John is hoping to help them out – but it’s a big project and will require the financial support of large corporations and the commitment of government. His partner in the project, conservationist Mike Pandey said, “We are currently probing the laws and regulations which we need to fulfill in order to buy the forest land. We are hoping for a breakthrough soon. It will be a shot in the arm for us as elephants across India need shelter and a habitat. Their numbers are drastically declining due to the chopping down of trees in forests either by nomadic tribals for setting up shelters or by people just for wood.”
In John’s upcoming film, New York, with Irrfan Khan and Katrina Kaif, John is seen rappelling down between two skyscrapers – a stunt he chose to do himself. “The director’s heart was in his mouth when he actually did it,” explained a source, “John was coming down between two skyscrapers and the wind between two high rise buildings is always very cutting. People with the toughest drive and enthusiasm can be blown away. It could prove fatal if the rope snapped or he lost his sense of direction.”
John is also looking forward to the cricketing comedy Hook Ya Crook with Shreyas Talpade and Kay Kay Menon. His co-star Shreyas Talpade spoke highly of him. John had been delegated the unenviable task of getting Shreyas in shape for he sporting scenes in the movie. “John’s a real sweet guy,” Shreyas said, “He has no hang-ups. He’d plan our diet charts and exercise regimes for us!”
It’s a busy time for John at the moment. He’s also involved in the American gangster movie, American Empire, alongside Supernatural’s Genevieve Cortese. John has often expressed a desire to break into Hollywood as an actor, not as an Indian. He has also signed up for what should be a very interested movie about freedom fighter Abdul Ghafar Khan called Chenab Gandhi, which will also star Amitabh Bachchan. In addition, there’s Abbas Tyrewala’s 1-800 Love and Film City with FIR’s Kavita Kaushik.
