ESHA HELPS A BUDDING OLYMPIAN

Gupta makes a donation and is also helping figure skater Nikhil Pingle raise money to undergo training in Canada

Bollywood actors are known to go out of their way to lend a helping hand to people. Esha Gupta is one of them. She is supporting figure skater Nikhil Pingle in getting a step closer to achieving his dream.

Nikhil is an upcoming ice skater, who has been performing consistently well in competitions in India and internationally. Now, he wants to train at an international training facility in Canada, to improve his skills in a bid to qualify for the Olympics. For the same, he requires financial support.

“Esha got to know about Nikhil through a friend and was quite intrigued by his story. She then found out details about him and was keen to help him in whatever way possible. She discussed the same with people close to her,” says an insider.

Since Esha wanted to help Nikhil, she made the donation through a crowdfunding website. “Esha also tweeted about it to spread awareness and help him out. She has also been encouraging her friends and close family members to donate. She has also been actively following up on how Nikhil has been progressing,” adds the insider.

When contacted, Esha says, “Being a patriot at heart and a sports enthusiast, I wanted to do my bit. Nikhil is talented and will represent India. I think each one of us needs to do our bit and promote our talent in whatever capacity we can.”

The Rustom (2016) actor feels that “crowdfunding as a concept is picking up.” She says, “Thanks to social media, it is easy to connect and spread awareness. A lot of people have reached out to me and my team. I am hopeful that we will be able to raise enough funds for Nikhil to train for the Olympics.”