In February this year, Sonu Sood was surprised to read about 27-year-old Bihar engineer Birendra Kumar Mahato quitting his full-time job to open a school for orphaned children, and even named it after the actor. Moved by Mahato’s endeavour to provide free education and food to 110 children, the actor met Mahato and the children at the school which also functions as a shelter home.
The actor spent time with Mahato to understand the needs of the school, from ration to quality education, building awareness to bridging the education gap between rich and poor. By the end of the day, Sonu Sood has started work on new building for the school so that it can house more underprivileged children, and ensure there is food for every child in the school.
“Increasing access to education is one of the best ways to combat poverty. We aim to educate children from the marginalised sections of the society so that they have a better chance at job opportunities. Higher education is something we are working on. The other important aspect is nutrition and overall well-being as this school is also a night shelter,” said the actor.
Right now Sood has been providing education close to ten thousand students across the country .