Sandalwood’s ”Sandalwood Queen” and the former MP Ramya (Divya Spandana) have made a go of re-entering the dog-eat-dog business, provoking a polarising response on social media. While the city records increasing claims of dog aggression, Ramya has doubled-down on her belief that dogs, by nature, are peaceful creatures and should be co-existing with people instead of being relegated to shelters.
The latest spark came from a video posted on the actress’s Instagram feed of a girl who plays together fearlessly and affectionately with a group of stray dogs. With this post, Ramya aims to show the street dogs are not naturally aggressive — instead, their behavior reflects how they are treated by society.
"Can You Predict Human Minds?" ---Ramya’s provocative comparison
Ramya is the latest star to challenge the story on stray dogs. She recently made headlines by challenging a court ruling: “One cannot understand the mind of a dog.” In one line that left many scratching their heads, she made the comparison of canine behaviour and human criminality to point out an issue of empathy. She said:
Human minds are also unpredictable
In a heartbeat, every person could commit an act of rape or murder. Should we jail every human being as a safety measure? Then why do we demand all dogs are rounded up and housed in shelters?” To such an outrageous effect, Ramya prompted the world to cease "demonizing" a whole population of animals for what a few got away with. Now, she is a forceful opponent of the mass relocation of dogs to shelters, promoting cohabitation and more effective sterilization programs instead.
The Truth on Ground: Fear on the streets of Bengaluru
But while Ramya’s advocacy finds support in the eyes of animal lovers, it has come across an unbearable response from city dwellers who experience the daily life of the "dog menace." In neighborhoods such as Nandini Layout, the conditions are getting to a boiling point. A recent video from the area that caught the news media highlighted the chilling scene of five or six dogs chasing a man on his morning walk. There are even some citizens who have announced that simply going out in foot traffic to a park or a supermarket is a high-risk task — and in some cases, it is even truer.
- Morning Walkers with fear: Residents complained to BBMP (Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike) that they cannot even walk at dawn anymore.
- Threat to Children: Parents are increasingly reluctant to let children play in public parks because of packs of territorial strays.
Public Outrage: In response to Ramya’s video, one citizen grimly asked: "It’s easy to post cute videos from a safe distance, but who will take ownership when a child endures mauling in a blind spot?"
The Citizen Stats / The BBMP’s Dilemma
By early 2026, stray dogs have already become an even more significant concern. Currently, the BBMP is torn between the strict Animal Birth Control (ABC) rules and the growing demand of the public to clear the streets.
Is There a middle way?
This puts Ramya’s "love and empathy" approach in direct conflict with the citizens’ "public safety first" mandate—a citywide crisis that cannot be overcome. And while the actress tries to understand and love the animal, dog bite victims are expecting the latest step in management to be handled immediately. And as such conflicting views of urban life struggle with each other, do we face the reality that a city like Bengaluru can even cultivate a harmonious equilibrium between dogs and humans, or will the "Reform Express" of urban governance entail the elimination of strays from its streets?
