Sonu var bharosa nay kay? 9 reasons why we deserve a Sonu Sood biopic post COVID-19 lockdown

As COVID-19 lockdown left thousands of migrant labourers stranded, Bollywood actor Sonu Sood came to their rescue and arranged buses for them to reach their home states. The 'Simmba' actor has been making headlines for the generous contributions he has made, amid the coronavirus crisis in the country. From arranging buses for migrants and opening his Mumbai hotel for occupancy of healthcare workers to supplying PPE kits, the 'Simmba' actor has been at the forefront. While, he's gaining massive fan following for his efforts, here are 8 reasons why we deserve a Sonu Sood biopic post lockdown:

1. Migrant Saviour

As COVID-19 lockdown forced hundreds of thousands of migrant labourers to take to the path of their homes on foot, a voice echoed - "paidal kyon jaaogey mere dost? (why do you walk friend)" - and an actor who is predominantly known for villainous on-screen performances came out to help them. Sonu sponsored the travel and meal kits for the migrants after receiving permission from the Karnataka, UP, Bihar and Maharashtra governments.

2. Lending support to 'national heroes'

Sonu Sood opened doors of his Mumbai hotel for healthcare workers fighting COVID-19. He said, “In the tough times that we have been living and to support the national heroes who have been tirelessly working day and night, I open my hotel in Juhu for all the healthcare workers. Considering the mammoth duty these heroes are doing right now, this is the least we can do for them. We are all in this together, let's all come forward and support them.”

3. Migrant woman naming newborn son after the actor

Sonu Sood in a recent interview revealed that a pregnant, whom he had helped reach home safely, has named her new born son after him. The actor is not just garnering praises and prayers, he's also winning the hearts of thousands of stranded migrants, who were able to reach home, amid COVID-19 lockdown.

In an interview with Anupama Chopra, he revealed that the woman has named her baby Sonu Sood Shrivastav. The actor's surname will be used as the child's middle name. Talking about the same, he said, "I said, how can it be Sonu Sood as you are Shrivastav. It could probably be Sonu Shrivastav, but she said, ‘Nahi humney bachche ka naam Sonu Sood Shrivastav rakha hai.’ That was so sweet; I was touched."

4. Airlifting 177 girls from Kerala

After arranging hundreds of buses for the migrant labourers, Sonu also arranged a special aircraft to airlift 177 girls, who were stuck in Ernakulam due to the lockdown. According to a report by Times of India, he took permissions from the Kochi and Bhubaneshwar airport authorities and called an aircraft from Bangalore.

5. Setting up a toll free number for migrants

He has recently launched a toll free number to facilitate the migrants to reach their home. The actor has transported workers to far off states such as Karnataka, Bihar, Jharkhand and UP. He said the attempt is to help as many people as possible to reach their home. He has launched a toll free number - 18001213711 through which one can reach out to Sood's team for help.

"I was getting a lot of calls... thousands of calls everyday. My family and friends were busy collecting the data then we realised we might miss out on a lot of people who we will not be able to approach us. So we decided to open this call centre, it is a toll free number," Sood told PTI.

6. Helping the underprivileged by arranging meals during Ramadan

Sonu Sood also distributed food among the underprivileged in Bhiwandi during Ramzan. He said, "Everyone (labourers) needs food, help and guidance reaching homes. It's endless. Everyone has to come forward and do their bit. Ramzan is important to Muslims and they were worried how they will get food so I arranged for some of them."

7. Sonu Sood's life has been a 'full circle'

While the actor's efforts towards the nation's COVID-19 fight is enough for a full blown heart-touching biopic, his real life is no less than a Bollywood movie. In 1997, the actor used to travel with Rs 420 train pass from Borivali to Churchgate everyday and today, he's helping thousands of people travel home. On Friday, a fan shared a picture of the actor's train pass and wrote, "The one who has really struggled, understands the suffering of other people." Replying to the tweet, Sonu wrote, "Life is a full circle."

8. From reel life villain to real life hero

"Go tell the migrant workers not to worry because Sonu Sood is there for them... Maybe the person acts in negative roles in cinemas but this man is a true 'nayok' (hero) in the real world," gushes a Facebook post written in Bangla by a student from Kolkata.

Sonu Sood has emerged as the man of the moment and won millions of hearts. His social media is flooded with praises by fans and Bollywood's quintessential villain showed us how to be a real-life hero.

9. 'Moga'- dish named after Sonu Sood's birthplace

Chef Vikas Khanna has prepared a special dish and named it "Moga" after the town in Punjab where actor Sonu Sood was born. This, because Khanna is impressed with Sonu's charity work amid the COVID 19 lockdown.

Khanna shared a photo of the special dish with a tweet message: "Dear @SonuSood everyday you are inspiring us. Can't cook for you right now in appreciation of your work. So sending you a dish Im going to name "MOGA" after your birthplace. #Respect #RealHero."

Sonu was overjoyed naturally, and he called Khanna the "world's best chef".

For the uninitiated, "Akshay Kumar to play Sonu Sood in his biopic," The joke has been doing the rounds of social media for quite sometime now. The reference, in good humour, is to Sonu's initiative to send stranded migrant labourers home amid the COVID-19 pandemic, just as in the 2016 film "Airlift", Akshay Kumar had played a character that helps evacuate numerous stranded Indians from Kuwait after Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein invaded that country.

The joke really started trending after filmmaker Sanjay Gupta texted Sonu Sood on Tuesday, informing him about the same.

Gupta shared a screenshot of his WhatsApp conversation with Sonu Sood on Twitter. In the screenshot, a message sent by him reads: "Brother in his next film Akshay Kumar is going to play Sonu Sood! Can I get the rights please?"

Sonu has reacted to the joke with laughing emojis.

With quotes and inputs from Agencies.