John Abraham

A calendar with pictures of celebrities and their tailwaggers! Wow! What a lovely way to start a new year!!!

The 2014 calendar of World For All features 12 celebrity pet parents with their stunning tailwaggers. John Abraham is the

cover of the calendar, endorsing the adoption of stray animals in Mumbai. The eight-week-old sisters – Moon (white) and Lolo (black), and one-year-old Undi, who make a softie of tough-guy John, are up for adoption.

John Abraham supports World For All in the agenda to take care of stray animals in Mumbai, be it cats, be it dogs, be it any kind of animals. “I appreciate the effort they’re putting in and I wish them all the best. I wish all pet lovers to do their bit for the welfare of the stray animals,” adds John.

Featured celebrity pet parents…
The calendar features 12 celebrity pet parents: Nimrat Kaur, Mukul Deora, Sapna Bhavnani, Priyanka Bose, Bruna Abdullah, Ankur Vikal, Paresh Kamath, Harish Iyer, Anju Mahendru, Vikas Bahl, Ahana Deol and Gargi Gogoi. All these pet parents have adopted Indian breed animals.
Each pet parent has a different story to tell. Bruna picks up stray cats from neighbourhood and gets them neutered. The cats in her shot are hers. While, Nimrat Kaur has two cats – one of them is nine years old. Harish always wanted to have a pet but his parents refused. So, one fine day, he brought home a pet and named him Shiva, so that his parents do not throw him out.
The brains and hard work
behind the calendar…
The calendar is shot by photographer Sahil Mane and produced and art directed by Tara Kaushal. They have four dogs and two cats. They are all Indian breeds. “Our dogs are called Janis Joplin aka Jana, Naomi Wolf aka Num-Num, Steven Tyler aka Cheelu and Ervin Olf aka Oli, all named after people we really admire in the art’s spheres. Mama cat is Britney Spears; her daughter is Chini Chairman Mao, named after the building cat Chinchin who was probably her father,” tells Tara.
“I believe discrimination against strays is a bit like believing in the caste system – that where a dog/cat comes from, who his/her parents are, etc determine what they’d be like inside. Adopting strays takes a certain level of cool – when you can go beyond lineage and pedigree, and see an animal for the love he/she has to share. The calendar contains celebrity pet parents –people you want to be or know – who love their Indian dogs and cats,” tells Tara.
“People say Sahil and my animals – four dogs and two cats – are lucky to have been rescued. In actual fact, we are lucky for the love they give us every day,” adds Tara.

The welfare organisation…
Founded by Ruchi Nadkarni and Taronish Bulsara, World For All (www.worldforall.in) is an animal rescue organisation that encourages people to adopt stray dogs and cats from Mumbai’s streets and runs an active spay-neuter campaign.
(You can pick up a calendar by mailing at: wfacalendar2014@gmail.com or
info@worldforall.in)

Transforming pets into models: My assistants were engaged in keeping the animals interested… making noises, offering food, meowing and whistling just out of the shot!
Dogs vs cats: Cats are static and shy, so it’s harder to get an interesting photograph; though sometimes they prove to be easier as they stay still.
Special shooting moment: Every one of the shoots has been special, but the shoot of animal-lover John Abraham, the cover of the calendar, was especially so. The puppies he’s shot with are up for adoption through World For All– were beautiful. And then, it’s John!
Advice to pet parents trying to get the perfect shot: Patience, Patience, Patience! Create interesting pictures by exploring lower angles and getting down to their level.