I have been against animal cruelty right from childhood, but I never acted upon it. I was a vegetarian before going vegan. I used to think that by being vegetarian, I was not causing any harm to animals. At school, I called myself a 'vegetarian activist' and questioned friends and teachers who ate meat. I would hear excuses like 'Lions eat meat' and 'Plants feel pain'. I would try my best to make my friends and teachers understand, but somehow I could never convince any of them. So, I would come home and read about different arguments on the internet. I also watched videos to learn how to debunk the arguments of meat-eaters.
One such video that I watched was Gary Yourofsky's 'The best speech you'll ever hear'. Towards the end, Gary Yourofsky speaks about the horrors of the dairy industry, which I was supporting. I researched some more about veganism and got to know about honey, silk, leather, etc. I was in 12th standard then, and I realized that my actions didn't align with my morals. That's how I went vegan! It’s been more than 3 years now.
I also look for opportunities to have conversations with people about veganism. One challenge was the mess in my college. There were vegan options, and I could easily eat well. But meat, milk and eggs were served all the time, and many of my friends ate them. It was hard to sit amidst these products of violence.
So, I decided to do something. There was a whiteboard outside the mess on which the menu was displayed. I bought a marker and carried it to the mess every day. I would anonymously write a vegan message such as 'Meat is Murder or 'Dairy is Scary', right next to the non-vegan menu on the whiteboard. Later, when I visited the mess, I would find messages like 'But Chicken is Tasty', etc., next to my message. It's puzzling when people say that veganism is restrictive or boring because going vegan opened up so many new amazing recipes that I never knew existed before.
I don't know if my marker-activism impacted anyone, but I at least knew that people were reading my messages and hopefully thinking about their actions.
Initially, they weren't too fond of the idea of me suddenly giving up on milk, curd, etc. I have also convinced my family to become vegan as well.They tried talking me into eating them again as they were concerned about Calcium and other nutrients. I showed my family Gary Yourofsky's speech. They also read about animal agriculture, climate change, health and nutrition. After a few months, my family decided to go vegan too. My mom stopped buying milk, curd, and ghee. She started cooking vegan for all of us. My dad read a lot about veganism. He has given a few virtual talks on veganism in colleges and companies. My brother took an interest in vegan baking, and that's how we started Cloud Nine.
Cloud Nine is a small vegan food business that my brother and I started close to a year ago. We sell vegan cupcakes, doughnuts, cookies, ice cream and pizza. In a place like Trichy, where most people haven't heard of the word vegan at all, we try to create awareness through our business. It is heartwarming that people find our food great.
Finally, I would like to give a message to non-vegans. Going vegan is not hard at all. It is hard if we worry about taste and what we'd be missing. It is effortless when we think about the animals because a life full of torture and gruesome death (which is what they face) is more challenging than not eating ice creams or biryani. With vegan alternatives becoming available everywhere, the transition is easy. There is absolutely no reason for us to stay non-vegan.
Hello, I am Manasa, an engineering student at NIT Trichy. I enjoy drawing, designing and photography. I speak up for animal liberation and I use art to spread the message of veganism. With my brother, I run Cloud Nine, a small venture through which we sell vegan food to the people of Trichy.