In times of the second wave of Coronavirus, as people across the country are struggling to find beds in hospitals, oxygen cylinders and appropriate and adequate medication, Sonu Sood is once again fully geared up to extend help and support in various forms to the citizens of our country. While last year, during the lockdown, he helped stranded migrant workers reach their homes across India, this time around, among other things, he has promised to provide food to the people in the town of Neemuch, Madhya Pradesh.

This is how the idea emerged — recently when Sonu went as a celebrity judge on the dance reality show, Dance Deewane, he was deeply moved when a contestant Uday Singh, a daily wager, opened up about how the present situation has made it tough for people to make ends meets at his hometown Neemuch, MP. After hearing his ordeal, the actor decided that he will provide ration to all the needy people there until the lockdown is lifted.

When BT reached out to Sonu about his big-hearted gesture, he said, “I have seen people suffer without food. During lockdown, the daily wage workers are the ones who suffer immensely.”

Sonu said, “Imagine how helpless they feel — with no earnings, they can’t buy essentials or food for their families. I have promised them that whether it’s one month, six months or over a year, till the time the lockdown isn’t lifted, I will feed the people of the town. A guy from Neemuch performed on stage and he earned ration for the whole town. That’s what he earned from his talent and the platform.”

Sonu said that his whole team is busy working on the logistics to take this plan forward. He said, “We have made arrangements for a proper kit, which will have essentials like milk, dal, rice, masalas, oil, etc., so that they can run their kitchens. My team is working on executing this.” When asked if he was aware of Neemuch, a town he is all set to provide support to, he said, “A close friend of mine, actor Piyush Chopra, hails from Neemuch. He would talk about his hometown, so on seeing the contestant, I felt connected.”

The actor, who finished shooting for a period film, is spending most part of the day helping people in this time of crisis, with very little time left for a phone conversation. Signing off quickly, he said, “I am going to be up till 4 am sorting things out. As we speak, there are people from Delhi, Haryana and Chandigarh, who are in need of oxygen, and so I am reaching out to different parts of the country to get help.”