‘If authorities have given up, we must pitch in’
The desperation and helplessness among people seeking medical help amid the second wave of Covid-19 has made many, including celebrities, jump in to help. For actor Abhishek Banerjee, who was shooting for his film Bhediya in Arunachal Pradesh when all hell broke loose in Maharashtra and Delhi-NCR, this is a dark place to be in right now.
“I was feeling completely helpless for a few days, especially when I came back from Arunachal Pradesh, because being there was like a dream world. I was aware of what was happening [in other parts of the country], but we had no clue that it’s so serious. It’s crazy. But helping one another in these distressing times is the only way we can feel sane,” he says.
The casting director-turned-actor says this isn’t the time to dwell upon who failed us but to pitch in as much as we can. “It seems that the authorities have just given up. I don’t understand how it can function like this. They’re actually saying nothing can be done. It’s a huge failure of the infrastructure and the governments. I hope that they should own it. If the government and authorities have given up, then people in the society have to step up and pitch in. And they’re doing that,” says the Paatal Lok actor.
And with that spirit, Banerjee, who turns 36 today, is going to spend his special day helping people in need. “The only plan that I have for my birthday is helping people. Some of my childhood school friends have started this campaign for donation, and I’m going to be a part of it. That’s going to be my birthday present to myself,” he tells us.
Currently in Goa with his wife, Tina Noronha, at her family home, Banerjee shares, “There’s nothing happening in Mumbai, and Tina was here, so I also joined her from Arunachal Pradesh. I’m working from here as much as I can and fulfilling my work commitments.”