There is nothing ironic in the lion attacking a person doing a lion form. That’s what lions do to *other lions* anyway.

Kolanad teaches a martial art that inspires it’s movements from big cats. That’s all there is to it. She doesn’t claim to have lion super powers or preternatural wisdom, and whoever feels she should have, didn’t outgrew watching too many 80’s ninja films.

Whenever you handle big cats you are at risk. No matter how good a handler you are. Kolanad and everybody involved accepted taking the risk, and some of the risk manifested. For the angry couch warriors who think running this kind risk is not wise, well, go find some subject of interest other than martial arts and big cats, to begin with.

Watching the movements of that form, I can understand a big cat thinking WTF? That looks like Gita was a) showing off or b) acting like dinner. Watching the video closely the trainers don’t seem to be keeping the Lion under control, nor on a short enough leash.

Those writing rude comments about Gita should ask themselves why they blame the victim, rather than the Lion handlers who told Gita ‘do your routine’ and then they lost control of the Lion.

I’ve bothered to watch the video and read up on what happened and can only conclude that nobody was really at fault.

Firstly, she was not challenging the lion and made no attempt to challenge the lion. Anybody who suggested this obviously did not bother to watch the video properly or otherwise do not really understand English.

Secondly, it was a photoshoot and as far as photoshoots are concerned, it was arranged by the magazine, not by her. She, being the person interviewed, must have been assured that this was something safe to do.

Thirdly, in most likelihood this is not the first time that the lion had been in that kind of situations. I think that this lion is one of those animal actors which are commonly used in advertisements, movies, shows and yes, photoshoots.

Fourthly, if this was something dangerous, neither the magazine people nor the lion owner would have suggested or agreed to the photoshoot.

Therefore what happened here was something totally unexpected.

Fifthly, why is everybody blaming Ms Kolanad ? If anybody is to be blamed, shouldn’t it be the lion handler who should have ensured that nothing like that happened ? Was he being unattentive ?

In any case, I think that the lion wasn’t really in a predatory mood. If it had, Ms Kolanad would have seriously injured, if not killed. Notice how the lion let her go rather easily after being kicked in the face and pulled away. And how it rather easily deferred the second time just by the man pushing it away.

It’s quite obvious that the lion was a bit playful as well as curious, and it was not using the full force of his weight in at both times.

I also notice that Ms Kolanad is actually the second woman to be tackled by the lion in this video. The woman in red was attacked first, and if you noticed later when the lion ran for Ms Kolanad when she was down, it attempted to bring down the woman in red by swiping her feet.

Could it be that this lion was perhaps feeling amorous ? Were the women’s natural odors, something only the lion could smell, attracted it to them ?