The Kerala natural calamity has affected the lives of lakhs of people leaving them homeless. The state is witnessing worst flood condition with people around the country trying their best to contribute and support Kerala. A lot of people are extending their support to the victims by contributing money and everything else that is possible. Social media has been buzzing with people urging for help and circulating messages to reach out to those affected and in need of relief material. Celebrities from the film industry too are doing their bit to help.
Recently, Actor Amitabh Bachchan donated Rs51 lakh to support victims of Kerala floods, as per reports. He has also reportedly donated around 40 pairs of shoes and sent six cartons of his personal clothing, which includes around 80 jackets, 25 pants, 20 shirts and scarves.
South Indian stars Karthi and Suriya handed over a cheque of Rs 25 lakh to the Chief Minister’s Distress Relief Fund. Other celebrities including Kamal Haasan, Dulquer Salmaan, Vijay Sethupathi, Sidharth, Dhanush etc too have donated money. Allu Arjun has donated Rs 25 lakh, Kamal Haasan Rs 25 lakh, Mammootty and Dulquer Salmaan Rs 25 lakh, Anupama Parameshwaran Rs 1 lakh, Vijay Sethupathi Rs 25 lakh, Siddharth Rs 10 lakh, Dhanush Rs 15 lakh, Sivakarthikeyan Rs 10 lakh, Nayanthara Rs 10 lakh, Vishal Rs 10 lakh, Vijay Devarakonda Rs 5 lakh among others have helped in their won way. Actor Siddharth started a #KeralaDonationChallenge and urged people to contribute too. Another celebrity who joined the cause is Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan. It was reported that Shah Rukh Khan’s Meer Foundation had donated Rs21 lakh for Kerala. Resul Pookutty took to social media to thank Shah Rukh Khan and other Bollywood stars for the help.
Sushant Singh Rajput has donated Rs1 crore to the Chief Minister’s fund for Kerala flood victims on a fan’s request on Instagram. The user tagged Sushant and wrote that he wants to help the victims but doesn’t have the money to do so. After replying to the user, Sushant made the transaction and shared the screenshot on social media. While there are others who took to social media handles to highlight about the contributions made by others towards the noble cause. Actress Richa Chadha in an Instagram post said her film ‘Shakeela’ co-star Rajeev Govinda Pillai postponed his wedding to help people stuck in floods at his hometown Nannoor in Kerala. The actor was supposed to get married four days ago. He helped in making rafts and carrying boats by road to the low-lying areas, Richa said. Actress Sonam Kapoor took to Twitter to praise 8-year-old Anupriya who donated her piggy bank savings for Kerala flood relief. “At the age of 8, Anupriya has a heart of gold,” Sonam tweeted. The girl was saving the funds for buying a new bicycle for herself. After she made her donation, a bicycle manufacturer gave her a free bike.
While many other celebrities donated money, actor Randeep Hooda could actually be seen serving food to the needy on the ground.Posting a picture of the actor, serving food to a child affected by the catastrophe, the group’s Instagram handle wrote: “Bollywood actor @randeephooda joins the Khalsa Aid team in #Kerala ! It’s great to see celebrities on the ground and not just simply commenting on social media.”
Randeep has been in a social work mode for a while now. His social media timeline is full of images and work being done by Mumbai-based environment activist Afroz Shah to free Mumbai’s beaches of plastic waste. There have been times when he joined Afroz’s team. Randeep’s contribution in Kerala brings back memories of the work done by actor Siddharth (of Rang De Basanti fame) during the equally havoc-causing Chennai floods in 2015. Randeep has also been sporting the Sikh look for a while now, as he is shooting of his upcoming film based on the battle of Saragarhi, being directed by Rajkumar Santoshi.
Actor Sushant Singh Rajput’s gesture of paying Rs 1 crore (that too in the name of a fan) to Chief Minister’s Distress Relief Fund has been praised. However, some on Twitter are not happy with Amitabh’s contribution of Rs 51 lakhs and his personal belongings.
While much of the focus is on Kerala, neighbouring Kodagu in Karnataka too has had to face the brunt of nature’s fury. Among those celebs who have contributed and are requesting for help in this region is veteran actor Prakash Raj. He donated Rs 5 lakhs through Prakash Raj Foundation and also stated that he would help reconstruct life in the flood affected region.
