Kerala-made mechanical elephants are making their way into temples in South India Premium

Mechanical elephants replace live ones in Kerala temples, sparking debate on tradition and animal welfare.

For the fifth edition of the Dubai Pooram at the Etisalat Academy Ground in Dubai on December 2, 2024, four elephants were paraded in all their festive regalia. Gently swaying, shaking their heads, flapping their ears and swishing their tails, these jumbos were a sight to watch. One thing, though, these mechanical elephants were made by two Kerala-based companies.   

Parading elephants in religious processions is a matter of pride for organisers and participants in Kerala. These parades are usually eventless, but of late, attacks by captive elephants, (especially in the first two months of 2025), have caused five deaths in Kerala. Despite protests, elephants are being used in such high stress events, which have noise of fireworks and loudspeakers, milling crowds of people and the mistreatment, which often trigger these attacks. 

A few temples in Kerala have voluntarily moved to mechanical elephants possibly because rules for parading an elephant in a temple have become strict as a result of the attacks. 

Chalakudy-based Four He Arts Creations is one of the first companies in Kerala to make these mechanical elephants. The three elephants at the Dubai Pooram were made by them.

The four childhood friends — Prashant Prakasan, Santo Jose, Jinesh KM and Robin MR — made their first elephant, Kuttappayi, around 15 years ago. Built over six months, Kuttappayi was six-and-a-half feet tall. By the time Kuttappayi, with his bobbing head and swaying trunk, a swinging tail and flapping ears was ready, it was Santo’s sister’s wedding. Just for a lark, the friends decided to place Kuttappayi on a stage at the venue.

“He became the main attraction of the wedding! People then wanted to rent Kuttappayi for their functions, exhibitions, shop inaugurations etc in and around Chalakudy,” says Prashant. After that the four friends made motorised dinosaurs, The Jungle Book and The Hulk-themed sculptures, which they do even today.  

Cut to the present. The rudimentary Kuttappayi is a thing of the past. The friends have graduated to making mechanical elephants to be paraded in temples, be put on show at resorts and other commercial places. So far they have made 46-odd elephants, not only for clients in India, but also Dubai, Singapore, Kenya and the United States. Four of their jumbos are part of a circus in Spain. Not only are these cruelty-free, they are low maintenance and can be rented out.