Sonu Sood reaped immense popularity and praise for his relentless and path breaking work during the Coronavirus lockdown. While most of the celebrities were posting videos about baking banana bread, staying fit during lockdown and giving tutorials to manage household work, Sonu was working and helping stranded migrant workers reach their native towns. His work earned him names such as ‘Sonu Sood Real Hero’, ‘messiah’ and superhero.
The reel-life villain turned real-life hero helped thousands of migrant workers by arranging transport so that they could reach home when the government announced a lockdown without giving any alternatives for them to go back to their native towns. Even, after the lockdown he has come up with various initiatives to provide employment to the workers. Now, to honour his contribution, a Durga Puja pandal in Kolkata featured his life-size statue helping migrant workers.
West Bengal: A Durga puja committee has chosen the hardships faced by migrant labourers during COVID-induced lockdown as the theme for its puja pandal in Kolkata. The committee has also installed an idol of actor Sonu Sood to honour his service to the labourers during lockdown. pic.twitter.com/dTLlJyetdG
— ANI (@ANI) October 21, 2020
Sonu was overwhelmed seeing this and tweeted his gratitude. He called it his ‘best award ever’.
My biggest award ever https://t.co/4hOUeVh2wN
— sonu sood (@SonuSood) October 21, 2020
Srinjay Dutt, a member of the Durga Puja committee told a news agency, “Our theme is the struggle of migrant workers who were attempting to return to their homes during the COVID-19 pandemic. Actor Sonu Sood played a big role during the lockdown phase, we have erected a big statue of him to motivate others to help those near them.”
Apart from Sonu, the pandal also recreated prominent instances from the lockdown including migrant workers sleeping on the railway track, a mother pulling a suitcase while her exhausted child sleeps on it and the girl who cycled 1200 kms to bring her ailing father from Purulia district in West Bengal back to her home.
(Source: Twitter)
