Amul pays 'tribute' to Joaquin Phoenix's Oscars win, gets criticised by PETA which says actor is against dairy cruelty

People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) has criticised dairy company Amul for a 'tribute' ad to Hollywood actor Joaquin Phoenix and his Oscar-winning titular role in the film Joker.

Phoenix, who picked up the best actor trophy at the 92nd Academy Awards, spoke about climate change, animal rights, and gender inequality in a lengthy acceptance speech. "I think we’ve become very disconnected from the natural world. Many of us are guilty of an egocentric world view, and we believe that we’re the centre of the universe. We go into the natural world and we plunder it for its resources. We feel entitled to artificially inseminate a cow and steal her baby, even though her cries of anguish are unmistakeable. Then we take her milk that’s intended for her calf, and we put it in our coffee and our cereal," the actor said.

Amul, known for their timely creative tributes, put the best foot forward, and shared a illustration of the Amul Girl feeding butter to the actor on the Academy stage.

Check out the Amul illustration here

PETA India took to Twitter and slammed the creative by mentioning Phoenix is a vegan, and also spoke against artificial insemination, dairy cruelty in his acceptance speech. It also demanded if Amul wanted to pay a tribute to Phoenix and what he stands for, it should move towards plant-based milk and dairy products. Check out the reaction by PETA

Phoenix, who often encourages veganism, is associated with many charities, and has been constantly lending his support to a number humanitarian organisations, including PETA and Amnesty International.

(Also read of Firstpost - Oscars 2020: How Joaquin Phoenix, not Joker, became a voice for the voiceless this awards season)