A rampaging elephant who broke its chains causes havoc in a South Indian town on April 18.

The elephant was reportedly taking part in a festival at Kalimuthi temple in Kazhalmannam, Kerala when it broke it's chains and first attacked its handler.

Footage shows the angry beast storming through the street and comes close to filmer who is inside a building. The elephant then pushes over the concrete support for the awning with its head above the filmer. Screams are heard from behind the camera as the roof all but collapses.

The footage continues to show how the furious elephant flips over cars with ease into trees on the side of the road while locals throw projectiles at the enormous raging mammal. The escapee elephant then bats an unknown object down the street with its powerful trunk as men try to recapture it with ropes.

Towards the end of the footage, men run in terror as the elephant turns on them again.

A captive elephant went out of control and caused widespread damage in a town in South India on April 18.

The elephant named V. Ganapathi was taking part in a festival at Kalimuthi temple in Kuzhalmannam in Kerala when broke its chain and went on a rampage.

Eyewitnesses said the elephant first turned on its mahout, Raju, inuring him in the leg. It then roamed the town destroying several vehicles, two electric posts and a compound wall.

Despite injury, Raju led a team of elephant squad for over three hours to get the animal back in control.

A temple official said the elephant had possibly entered its ''musth period'', a periodic phase when they experience a surge in testosterone and turn very aggressive.

''We are establishing the exact sequence of events that led to the incident,'' he said.

Animal rights activists say captive elephants in India are overworked for financial gains and often not taken care of properly. This stresses the elephants and makes many of them aggressive, say activists.