Veggie Blog

An updated look at the names behind PETA’s vegetarian and vegan celebrity honours, including five verified years of PETA India winners.

Long before plant-based meals became commonplace on restaurant menus, a lighthearted celebrity contest helped put vegetarian eating into the headlines. In June 2007, Veggie-Blog shared news of PETA’s “Sexiest Vegetarian Alive” vote, with photos of Jared Leto, Natalie Portman and Tobey Maguire. That invitation to vote belongs to a different era: the original ballot should not be presented as an active contest today.

There is, however, a more interesting story to tell. PETA and its international affiliates have continued recognising famous people for their choices around animals and food, sometimes under different award names. The key is to distinguish PETA’s original US awards from PETA India’s more recent Most Beautiful Vegetarian Celebrity honours.

Below are five consecutive years of winners that can be checked against PETA India’s own announcements, followed by the background of the American contest, timing guidance and answers to common questions. The winners are listed as award recipients in the stated years; an award is not proof of anyone’s current diet.

Five recent years of PETA India vegetarian celebrity winners

PETA India has used the name Most Beautiful Vegetarian Celebrities for the honours discussed here. The dates below are announcement months, not guaranteed annual event dates. They are historical records rather than predictions of the next ceremony or contest.

Award year	Winners	Announcement month	Official announcement
2025	Sreeleela and Ravichandran Ashwin	December	PETA India 2025 winners
2024	Jacqueline Fernandez and Riteish Deshmukh	October	PETA India 2024 winners
2023	Zeenat Aman and Jackie Shroff	December	PETA India 2023 winners
2022	John Abraham and Fatima Sana Shaikh	December	PETA India 2022 winners
2021	Akshay Kumar and Bhumi Pednekar	December	PETA India 2021 winners

2025: Sreeleela and Ravichandran Ashwin

PETA India chose actor Sreeleela and cricketer Ravichandran Ashwin for its 2025 title. The organisation drew attention to Sreeleela’s public conversations about meat-free eating and her care for animals. It described Ashwin as vegetarian since birth and highlighted his concern for dogs and other animals. Their recognition shows how this award extends beyond the film industry to well-known sports figures.

2024: Jacqueline Fernandez and Riteish Deshmukh

The 2024 award went to actors Jacqueline Fernandez and Riteish Deshmukh. PETA India pointed to Fernandez’s animal-welfare campaigning and noted that Deshmukh is vegan and has supported plant-based food entrepreneurship. This is a useful reminder that vegetarian is the name of the award category; an individual recipient may be vegan.

2023: Zeenat Aman and Jackie Shroff

For 2023, PETA India recognised Zeenat Aman and Jackie Shroff. Its announcement discussed their interest in animal welfare, community animals and meat-free eating. Rather than focusing only on appearances, the organisation linked the award to public examples of compassion.

2022: John Abraham and Fatima Sana Shaikh

The 2022 recipients were John Abraham and Fatima Sana Shaikh. PETA India’s announcement referred to Abraham’s campaigning on animal-related issues and Shaikh’s support for animals in need. Both are discussed here because they received the title in 2022, not because their private eating habits have been independently checked today.

2021: Akshay Kumar and Bhumi Pednekar

Akshay Kumar and Bhumi Pednekar received PETA India’s 2021 honours. The announcement highlighted Pednekar’s move away from meat and her environmental advocacy; it also connected Kumar with plant-based eating. This year provides the starting point for our five-year historical record.

How the original “Sexiest Vegetarian” contest began

PETA’s US campaign used a more playful title. PETA says it first named Shania Twain its Sexiest Vegetarian in 2001. In the mid-2000s, the organisation held public-facing celebrity polls that appeared in entertainment news and vegetarian blogs. The original Veggie-Blog post was written during the 2007 voting period, which explains why it invited readers to support their favourite celebrity.

The winners of the 2007 US edition were singer Carrie Underwood and musician Kevin Eubanks. Their result is a historical fact, not a nomination or a vote that readers can take part in today. Over time, PETA’s American celebrity recognition also appeared under titles such as Sexiest Vegan Celebrities and Most Beautiful Vegan Celebrities.

This naming history matters. An online search for “PETA sexiest vegetarian” may return older polls, PETA India honours or stories about vegan awards. They are connected through an organisation and theme, but they are not one continuous global leaderboard with identical rules and dates.

What happened to PETA’s vegan celebrity award in the US?

PETA US published a 20-person Most Beautiful Vegan recognition for 2021, celebrating the twentieth anniversary of its original celebrity honour. In 2022, it recognised musician Lenny Kravitz and singer Anitta. In 2023, the recipients were actors and performers Bella Ramsey and Halle Bailey.

These are examples of PETA US honours, not an assertion that the US programme has operated on the same schedule in every subsequent year. As of this article’s October 2026 editorial review, no later US edition of this specific series was confirmed for inclusion, so we have not invented 2024, 2025 or 2026 US winners. PETA India’s awards in the table above are a separate regional programme.

For readers who enjoy learning about plant-based public figures more broadly, our Vegan Celebrities Around the World article covers a different question: celebrity advocacy rather than this particular award history.

When does PETA announce the awards?

If you want to know when to watch for another winner announcement, the honest answer is: the timing depends on the PETA organisation and the particular award.

For the five PETA India editions verified above, four announcements came in December and one in October. This makes autumn through the end of the year a sensible period to look for fresh PETA India news, but October or December is not a fixed future deadline.

Historically, PETA US made some celebrity announcements around June or July: the classic 2007 contest concluded in June, while the US Most Beautiful Vegan Celebrities announcements covered here appeared in July 2022 and June 2023. That pattern is useful background, not a promise that another contest will launch in summer.

Before writing that voting is open, look for an actual, dated announcement from the relevant PETA organisation. Older online forms, news articles and search snippets are not proof that submissions or voting are currently active.

Can ordinary people enter, or is it only for celebrities?

Celebrity awards typically recognise public figures; they are different from PETA’s older Sexiest Vegan Next Door and Sexiest Vegan Over 50 competitions, which have had their own rules and eligibility requirements. Those programmes should not be advertised as open unless the organisers have published a current call for entries.

Even if a previous competition offered public voting, that does not mean every modern award is decided by an online poll. PETA India has sometimes invited people to help choose celebrities, but the voting process and conditions should be checked anew each year.

Vegetarian and vegan: why the distinction matters

A vegetarian generally avoids meat and fish but may consume eggs or dairy. A vegan avoids animal-derived foods, including eggs and dairy, and veganism can also extend to other animal products in daily life. PETA’s changing award titles reflect these related but distinct ideas.

A public figure’s diet may also change over time. The safe wording is “received PETA India’s vegetarian celebrity award in 2024”, not “is definitely vegan today”, unless there is separate current evidence. This approach respects the facts, the people involved and readers who care about accurate labels.

Five ways to follow the awards without outdated information

1. Check the organisation. Is the announcement from PETA US, PETA India or another regional PETA group? Don’t combine them into one competition.
2. Check the year. A past winner remains a past winner, but a headline describing them as “this year’s winner” goes out of date.
3. Check the award name. “Sexiest Vegetarian” and “Most Beautiful Vegan” have both been used, but may indicate different periods or programmes.
4. Check the selection process. Voting, editorial selection and contests involving ordinary entrants are not interchangeable.
5. Avoid reused celebrity pictures. A press image or old Blogger thumbnail may be copyrighted. Use properly licensed images or an original illustration instead.

The featured image for this post is a computer-generated, plant-themed awards illustration. It is not a PETA trophy, a photo of an actual awards ceremony or a celebrity portrait.

Questions readers ask

Who won PETA India’s Most Beautiful Vegetarian Celebrity award in 2025?

PETA India named Sreeleela and Ravichandran Ashwin. The announcement was published in December 2025. They are the latest confirmed PETA India winners in this article’s five-year record.

Is PETA’s Sexiest Vegetarian contest still running?

The historical US “Sexiest Vegetarian Alive” poll from 2007 should not be treated as a currently open contest. PETA-related celebrity honours have continued under other names and in different regions, but the relevant organisation must confirm any current nomination or voting period.

Can I vote for PETA’s next winner?

Only if the organisation has an active voting page for that particular award. A ballot from 2007 or a previously published nominees page is not valid evidence of current voting.

Are the winners all vegan?

Not necessarily. Vegetarian and vegan are different descriptions, and an award title does not establish an individual’s complete or current diet. Some award recipients have publicly identified as vegan; others have been recognised under the vegetarian heading.

Final thoughts: a better way to celebrate vegetarian celebrities

The original “Sexiest Vegetarian” polls were designed to catch attention. Today, the stronger story is how entertainers, athletes and other well-known people can draw an audience to animal welfare, plant-based foods and everyday choices. A list with verified names, years and regions is more useful than an expired ballot or an unsupported claim about a celebrity’s current diet.

Which vegetarian or vegan celebrity inspires you? Share your choice in the comments, along with a link to a reliable interview or public statement. Please keep the conversation respectful and avoid sharing unverified claims about anyone’s private life.