Sonu Sood extends help to migrant workers amid lockdown, says ‘I can’t see people sleep empty stomach while we bake cakes, desserts at home’

Be it donating to various charities, offering his Juhu hotel to healthcare providers or feeding 25,000 migrants during Ramzan, actor Sonu Sood has been working relentlessly towards helping those in need amid the Covid-19 pandemic. And he took his philanthropic work a step forward when on Monday (May 11), he arranged ten buses for 350 migrant workers to help them reach their homes in Karnataka.

“People talk about how they don’t know what and how to help. But it’s really possible in so many ways. Every time I went out to get ration, I would see hundreds of people... children, old people, young men and women, carrying heavy loads, walking down the street to get back homes. I would stop them and request, ‘Aap log ruk jao, main kuch intezam karunga’. While some listened, some didn’t. Since that time, I’ve been trying to figure out ways to send these people home,” says the 46-year-old actor.

When transportation started opening up, Sood coordinated with the police, the Maharashtra government and the governments of other states, seeking permission to send these people home. It was also essential to ensure the workers were not from red zones, and their health checkups were done too.

For the journey, their lunch, dinner and refreshments were also packed, shares Sood, who plans to send 10 buses to different states every few days. The next on his list are Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Odisha and Jharkhand. Since these first set of buses left, he has been getting 100 calls every day, and so he’s contemplating sending some of these workers back home via trains as well.

“I can’t see people sleep empty stomach while we are baking cakes and desserts at home… There is a place called Kalwa Chowk in Mumbai that many migrant workers have been passing by daily. Early morning, my trucks filled with fruits and refreshments reach the place for these people,” he reveals.

In return of his good deeds, Sood cherishes all the love and blessings showered on him. On an emotional note, he shares, “I had come to Mumbai with just Rs 5,500 and have earned enough. My mother would say ‘life is all about giving’. If I can’t give back to the society, then this isn’t a good life I am leading. Thinking about what these people are going through while I’m in the comforts of my home, gives me sleepless nights,” he shares.

With no intention of stopping, Sood wants to help as much as possible till this crisis is over. “This is my duty, I won’t rest till I can help these people reach home. It’s very important to face reality and do good,” adds Sood, who was working on his Bollywood projects Prithviraj, biopic on PV Sindhu and his Tamil and Telugu films, when this crisis happened.

Asked how his industry friends have been reacting to his efforts and whether they have extended support, he says, “Many have called to praise my efforts. As far as help is concerned, I’m sure they are doing their bit. I’m not the one to sit at home and send money. I want to help people myself. And that’s what I’m doing.”