29 October,2024 05:49 PM IST | Mumbai | mid-day online correspondent
In Pic: Akshay Kumar
Diwali is just around the corner, and like everyone else, our Bollywood celebs are also set to celebrate the festival of lights in style. In the spirit of Diwali, Akshay Kumar has come up with a unique and innovative gift. He has started an initiative to feed about 1,200 monkeys daily on the outskirts of Ayodhya. It is said that ever since the Ayodhya temple opened for devotees, it has attracted large crowds, bringing with them hundreds of monkeys expecting to be fed. With the aim of ensuring that these monkeys get food and that the city remains clean, Akshay has arranged for proper nutrition and cleanliness measures.
While talking to 'HT City' about his initiative, Akshay said, "When I heard about the issues faced by the monkeys at such a holy place, I immediately felt like contributing my bit. Writing my parents' and my father-in-law's names on the van was an emotional decision. I feel that somewhere up there, they would be proud of me. Given a choice, I would have written âAruna, Hariom aur Rajesh Khanna di gaddi' on the back of the van, in true Punjabi style."
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Interestingly, these vans will have his parents' and his father-in-law, late actor Rajesh Khanna's, names written on them as a tribute to them. This is not the first time that Akshay has come forward to help in a social cause. Earlier, Akshay made a donation of about Rs 1.21 crore to the Haji Ali Dargah in Mumbai for its renovation. He also donated Rs 25 crores to the PM Cares Fund.
Akshay Kumar is gearing up for the release of Rohit Shetty's 'Singham Again'. The movie has an ensemble cast, including Kareena Kapoor, Deepika Padukone, Tiger Shroff, Ranveer Singh, Ajay Devgn, and Jackie Shroff. The movie will also feature a cameo by Salman Khan as Chulbul Pandey. 'Singham Again' draws inspiration from the rich narrative of the Hindu epic 'Ramayana'. The film is set to clash with Kartik Aaryan's 'Bhool Bhulaiyaa 3' at the box office.