Russian model Viktoria Odintsova is being harshly criticized online for a photo shoot she did that involved handling by one arm from the edge of a 1,000-foot-tall skyscraper in Dubai… with apparently no permission and no safety equipment.
In videos and photos published on YouTube and on Instagram, the 22-year-old model can be seen holding onto the arm of a male daredevil assistant. In one photo she’s leaning backwards off the edge of the Cayan Tower (the world’s tallest building back in 2013) and in another shot she’s dangling by an arm clasped tightly onto the male assistant’s.
Videos were also posted, showing an anxiety-inducing behind-the-scenes view of how dangerous Odintsova’s stunt really was:
Of the thousands of comments posted so far, a large number of them are critical of Odintsova’s stunt. Many of the responses accuse Odintsova of recklessly risking her life and setting a dangerous example for the 3.2 million people who follow her on Instagram (warning: NSFW), all for a set of viral photos and for attention.
“The stupidity of people today has no heights,” writes one commenter on YouTube.
“The stupidest and most desperate attempt for attention ever done,” says another. “Sending a VERY WRONG message to many young people around the world.”
With the rise of social photo sharing and with “rooftopping” photography, there have been stories in recent years of young people who fall and die while attempting this type of extremely dangerous stunt. Just in 2015, a 24-year-old photographer died after falling from a 52-story building in NYC and a 17-year-old Instagram daredevil died in Russia after falling 9 stories.
(via Viktoria Odintsova via Mashable)
Image credits: Header still frames from video by Alexander Mavrin/Mavrin Studios
