Art may have prevailed in the case of a Russian influencer who posed naked while lying face down on top of an elephant in Bali, as she will not be facing legal consequences over the controversial post after police called her in for questioning earlier this week.
In a post uploaded earlier this month, Alesya Kafelnikova can be seen stark naked while lying on top of a Sumatran elephant, sufficiently covering her breasts. The shoot reportedly took place in Taro, Gianyar regency.
Perhaps unsurprisingly, the clip then made headlines in Indonesia, leading to a follow-up post from the 22-year-old, who defended her photoshoot.
“It was a private photo shoot, I didn’t have a purpose to hurt the feelings of local people at all. We love Balinese culture and respect Indonesian rules. Please sorry if you see something else in this,” she wrote in the caption, which also included a mention of her local charity work.
Gusti Ayu Suinaci, who heads a special crimes unit at the Bali Police, told local media outlets that Kafelnikova was summoned for questioning on Tuesday after police suspected that the post, which has since been deleted from her Instagram account, may have violated the law.
“We just want to confirm with her why she made that post,” Ayu said. “As an artist, she sees that as a form of art and her love for animals and nature.”
Police have since concluded that the post did not violate any law.
“She has apologized and she just inadvertently showed something seen as vulgar [but] it was art,” Ayu added.
