Rajkummar Rao, Manushi Chhillar, Saiyami Kher join Juhu beach clean up drive post Ganpati visarjan

Bollywood stars Rajkummar Rao, Manushi Chhillar and Saiyami Kher brought some celebrity heft to the Juhu beach clean-up drive here on Friday, a day after hundreds of Ganesh idols were immersed in the sea.

The Cleanathon 2.0 2023 Ocean Waste Management event, organised by Divyaj and Bhamla Foundations, saw celebrities joining volunteers and locals to collect debris littered across the vast expanse of the famous waterfront.

"This is a very important initiative. I come here for walks, so it feels very nice to be greeted by a clean beach. Today, I got an opportunity to participate in it myself," Rao told PTI.

The Newton actor also praised PM Modi for initiating the 'Swachh Bharat' campaign.

"It's a very important initiative and I'd want us all to participate in it,” he added.

Former Miss Universe Manushi Chhillar, who was last seen in The Great Indian Family, said movie sets are becoming more eco-friendly nowadays.

"It's changed a lot over time. We shot The Great Indian Family during the pandemic, between two lockdowns – it was wonderful to see that with all the masks people were using, all the precautions being taken, everything was still properly organised, where we made sure we weren't leaving waste around.

"Whatever had to be recycled was being separated with things that were compostable. These little changes are coming in the film industry, and I hope they come even more," she said.

Actor Saiyami Kher said participating in the drive in the morning was the least anyone could do to keep the beach clean after the visarjan.

"It must not be easy for Ganapati Bappa to see the litter either, so waking up at 7 in the morning is the least of our difficulties. It's our responsibility, and I'm happy to not only see us (Bollywood actors and politicians), but so many people who've shown up for the beach cleanup – it feels very, very good," she said.

"I'm happy to see so many people who showed up for the beach clean up and it's very good," she added.

Producer Jackky Bhagnani said, "I always feel it strange when people point out that you've come to clean something or students have come to do it as nobody's doing a favour to anyone – you're doing it for yourself and your future generations."