HEART-WARMING! Alia Bhatt Releases A 30 Year Old Endangered Turtle Back Into The Sea [SEE PICS]

How The Endangered Sea Turtle Escaped A Near-Death

A green sea turtle was found stuck in a fishing net two months ago on the Chikhala beach in Dahanu. However the reptile was fortunate enough to escape death and was nursed back to health by Dr. Dinesh Vineharkar.

Alia Sends It Back To Its Home

Yesterday, the 'Dear Zindagi' actress visited a turtle rescue centre in Dahanu, run by Wildlife Conservation and Animal Welfare Association (WCAWA), and helped its volunteers in releasing that sea turtle named ‘Queen' back into the sea.

Alia Kick-Starts The Co-Exist Initiative

This move marked the launch of her new initiative, CoExist, which is aimed at animal welfare and tackling environmental issues.

Issues Like Animals Being Ill-Treated Always Bothered Her

Alia was quoted saying to Mumbai Mirror, "I had been thinking about this for a while. Issues like elephants or dogs being ill-treated, stories of endangered animals like tigers being poached, have always bothered me. I've been passionate about animals ever since I was very young.

My sister (Shaheen Bhatt) and I would always rescue kittens and cats, foster them for some time and find them homes or keep them with us. My idea with this initiative is a world where man lives in harmony with animals and nature."

Alia Says People Like Us Need To Be The Voice Of Animals

She further added, "There will be different campaigns I will be doing over time. When I was releasing Queen, Dr Dinesh noted that it was ironic since the turtle was going back to its mother (the sea) on Mother's Day.

People like us need to be the voice of animals. It was a great way to kickstart my initiative because I'm a Mumbai girl who lives by the sea. If I can make a difference in any way, it will be a step in the right direction."

A Family Dinner For Alia

Alia returned to Mumbai the same day to celebrate Mothers' day with mom Soni Razdan and the rest of the family at her new house that she shares with Shaheen.

She was quoted saying, "I had the entire family over for dinner after a really long time. It was a special day because Pooja and Rahul (step-siblings) were present, along with my parents, under one roof. That has not happened in a really long time."

On The Work Front

Talking about films, Alia will be next seen in Ayan Mukherji's superhero flick Dragon co-starring Ranbir Kapoor and Zoya Akhtar's Gully Boys with Ranveer Singh.