Actor Sonu Sood has gifted a rifle to Dhanbad's Konica Layak, a state-level rifle shooting champion who was unable to practice for the upcoming East Zone Shooting Championship because she did not have a rifle. Konica will be representing her state in the championship.

Last year, Layak won at the 11th Jharkhand State Rifle Shooting Championship. However, she had to borrow a rifle to practice her sport and, eventually, win a gold medal in the 50m Rifle category and a silver medal in the 50m Rifle Prone final.

Layak's problem of being unable to practice with a borrowed rifle every day gained attention when netizens took to social media to urge Sonu to help her with a rifle, so that she can start preparing for the championship. The actor then reached out to Konica and her family.

"I am happy to have helped someone as talented as Konica fulfill her dreams. When a bunch of people on social media reached out to me to help her, I immediately contacted my team to arrange for a rifle. No one talent in our country should go to waste. I feel blessed that I got the chance to be a part of her journey," Sonu told IANS.

Sonu has been actively participating in humanitarian causes over the past year, after having helped migrant labourers reach home during last year's lockdown. From providing smartphones to children for online classes, to distributing e-rickshaws to the unemployed, he has balanced his schedule between shoots and charity.

The actor will soon be seen in the Telugu film "Acharya" and the Hindi film "Prithviraj".