Bollywood screen villain Sonu Sood turns real-life hero 

KATHMANDU: Bollywood actor Sonu Sood has arranged a chartered flight for 177 women stuck in Kerala's Ernakulam amid the nationwide lockdown in India.

The girls airlifted by Sood had been employed in a factory in Kerala engaged in stitching and embroidery work.

According to ANI, after being informed by a close friend, Sood took permission from the Indian government to have Kochi and Bhubaneswar airports opened. A special aircraft was arranged from Bengaluru to airlift 177 women from Kerala to Bhubaneswar and help them return to their families.

The 46-year-old Simmba actor has been arranging hassle-free passage of migrant labourers to their resective homes.

"I was deeply saddened to see them walking with their little children on foot. These are the people who built our houses, our offices, they have laid the roads and I feel that we should not leave them in such distress," ANI quoted Sood as explaining the reason that drove him to take up the initiative of helping them return home.

Earlier on May 10 Sood had arranged multiple bus services for stranded migrant workers to be taken home form Mumbai to Gulbarga, Karnataka.