Delhi is no stranger to elections. But this week, the capital has been voting for candidates who have four legs, tails and very different campaign strategies.
The "Fat Dogs of Delhi" contest began with 64 dogs and turned neighbourhood animals into Instagram candidates. Supporters campaigned for their favourites, created posters and asked strangers to vote.
Now, the competition has reached its grand finale, with Gola from SDA Market in Hauz Khas and Googoo from Saket facing off. There is also an unusual twist: Gola died before the final and is now competing posthumously.
Here is how an Instagram page turned a collection of neighbourhood dogs into one of Delhi’s most unusual online elections.
How Did It Start?
The competition was created by the anonymous person behind the Instagram page Fat Dogs of Delhi.
According to The Indian Express, the organiser is a final-year Delhi University journalism student who started the page after moving to Delhi. She initially posted photographs of overweight dogs she spotted around the city.
Her friends began sharing the photographs. Soon, people started sending in pictures of dogs along with their names and locations.
The organiser later turned the idea into a knockout contest after seeing similar informal competitions on X, known as “oomf offs”. The first 64 nominations were placed into head-to-head match-ups, with Instagram users deciding which dog moved forward.
The organiser told the BBC that she wanted it to be a fun way for people to bond.
How Did The Dog Election Work?
The format was simple.
The 64 dogs were divided into pairs. Followers voted through Instagram Stories, with the dog receiving more votes advancing to the next round.
The scheduled stages were:
24 September: Round of 64
25 September: Round of 32
27 September: Quarter-finals
28 September: Semi-finals
30 September–1 October: Final round
The competition quickly developed the look of a political campaign. Supporters created posters, memes, reels and vote appeals. Some people campaigned for dogs outside their own neighbourhoods, while reports said supporters from cities including Kolkata and Kerala also joined in.
The page also gained tens of thousands of followers during the contest.
Who Are The Finalists
Googoo, from Saket, is a 46-kg mixed-breed dog who has become one of the most recognisable contestants.
Ironically, while he is competing for the fattest-dog title, he is also undergoing a weight-loss programme at Jeevashram Foundation in Delhi. His food is regulated and he receives medical check-ups. The Indian Express reported that his meals include daliya, chapatis in milk and a small quantity of chicken.
Googoo was entered into the contest by Kabir Wadhawaran, who first saw him in a local park in 2021. Wadhawaran said Googoo was then less than half his current size. Supporters have since created posters and social-media campaigns around him.
His final opponent is Gola, also known as Kebab or Rajpal Singh, was from the SDA Market area of Hauz Khas. She became one of the most prominent contestants during the competition.
But Gola died before the grand finale.
Her death did not remove her from the competition. Instead, she continues to appear on the final ballot posthumously. According to The Statesman, Gola defeated Hero in the semi-final by 69,638 votes.
Her supporters have continued campaigning for her after her death.
What Happened To Tara And Gola?
The semi-final stage took an unexpected turn.
Tara from Khan Market and Gola, also known as Kebab or Rajpal Singh, from the SDA Market area of Hauz Khas, died before the final. Both had been among the four dogs in the semi-finals. Their deaths prompted tributes from supporters and the organisers.
There is no confirmed evidence in the reports reviewed that links their deaths to the contest or establishes that their weight caused their deaths. That distinction matters because the incident has become part of a wider discussion around the competition.
So, Who Is Most Likely To Win?
The semi-final vote margins show that Gola entered the finale with a much larger recorded margin than Googoo. Gola's 69,638-vote semi-final win was considerably larger than Googoo's 4,873-vote victory over Tara.
Those figures show how the previous round unfolded. They do not, however, establish the result of the final.
The final vote will decide whether Delhi's unofficial title goes to Gola posthumously or to Googoo.
Is It Just A Funny Internet Contest?
The contest has given Delhi's community dogs unusual visibility. Many of the participating dogs are not privately owned pets. They live around markets, parks and residential areas and are fed or cared for by several people in their neighbourhoods.
But animal-welfare concerns have also emerged.
Some social-media users have questioned whether celebrating extreme weight could encourage overfeeding or make an unhealthy condition seem desirable. Being overweight can increase health risks for dogs, and Googoo's own participation highlights the contradiction: he is being celebrated for his size while simultaneously undergoing a supervised weight-loss programme.
The organiser has also indicated that the attention generated by the contest could be channelled towards animal welfare, including highlighting groups and individuals seeking donations.
For now, the contest remains an unofficial social-media poll, not an official civic election. Its significance lies less in the title itself and more in what happened around it: 64 neighbourhood dogs became online celebrities, strangers began campaigning for animals they had never met, and a simple Instagram idea turned into a city-wide conversation about community dogs, affection and animal welfare.
The final question is now down to two names: Googoo or Rambabu.
The result is expected between 30 September to 1 October.
TL;DR | News At Glance
What is the Fat Dogs of Delhi contest?
It is an Instagram-based knockout competition to choose Delhi’s unofficial "fattest dog", with 64 dogs entering the contest.
When did it begin?
The first round began on 24 September 2026.
Who started it?
The contest was started by the anonymous creator of the Fat Dogs of Delhi Instagram page, a final-year Delhi University journalism student.
Why was it started?
The organiser said she took inspiration from informal knockout contests on X and wanted to create something fun that could bring people together.
Who are the finalists?
Googoo from Saket and Rambabu, also known as Chonky, from Yusuf Sarai.
Who is Googoo?
Googoo is a 46-kg mixed-breed dog currently staying at Jeevashram Foundation, where he is undergoing a weight-loss programme and medical monitoring.
What happened to Tara and Gola?
Both dogs died before the final after reaching the semi-final stage. Reports reviewed do not establish that their deaths were caused by the competition or their weight.
Who is likely to win?
There is no verified public vote count establishing a clear favourite between Googoo and Rambabu.
When will the result be announced?
The latest reporting says the final result is expected between 30 September to 1 October.
