"Go Green: Go Vegetarian" says Esha Gupta in her new PETA Ad

Wearing a sexy green bikini next to the caption "Go Green: Go Vegetarian", Bollywood actor and third-place winner of the Femina Miss India 2007 beauty pageant Esha Gupta 

After the shoot, Gupta granted PETA an exclusive videotaped interview about why she went vegetarian. The interview is available here, and the broadcast- quality link of the interview is available here.

"Being a vegetarian really saves lives", says Gupta, who made her screen debut in Kunal Deshmukh's 2012 hit film, Jannat 2. "If you love animals, please don't eat them." Gupta concludes, "[I]f you want to live [a] longer and healthier life [of] at least 10 years more, then I think that being a vegetarian is a better way!"

Every vegetarian saves the lives of many animals every year. Also, vegetarians are, on average, fitter and trimmer than meat-eaters are, and they are less likely to be afflicted with heart disease, diabetes and cancer – all of which are major health problems in India. Additionally, raising animals for food is a leading cause of water pollution and land degradation, and a recent United Nations report concluded that a global shift towards a vegan diet is necessary to combat the worst effects of climate change.

Gupta joins a growing list of actors, athletes and other celebrities – including Lara Dutta, Shahid Kapoor, Sonu Sood, Pankaj Advani, Anil Kumble, Amrita Rao, R Madhavan, Poorna Jagannathan, Kartik Murali, Sushil Kumar, Rahul Sharma and Monica Dogra – who have appeared in pro-vegetarian ads for PETA India.

Gupta received great accolades for her work in the recent films Raaz 3 and Chakravyuh, which were box-office hits.