Sonam Kapoor celebrated Republic Day at Neerja Bhanot’s school

Sonam Kapoor was the chief guest at the Republic Day flag hoisting ceremony at Bombay Scottish School, today.

However, the actress had not been invited as an alumni of the institution, or a celebrity.

Instead, she has been asked to do the honours because Neerja Bhanot, who Sonam will be essaying in the forthcoming movie Neerja, was a student of the school.

It was an eerily emotional Republic Day morning for Sonam Kapoor when she visited the Bombay Scottish School. Sonam, wearing a Khadi saree, reached the venue at 7:40 am sharp for the flag-hoisting ceremony and interaction with the students.

Director Ram Madhavani, who accompanied her says, “It was essentially a visit to familiarize the younger students of the school who may or may not be familiar with what Neerja had done. Her achievement was not just to try to save those lives but also to conquer that fear which we cannot even imagine when placed in a crisis situation of the proportion that Neerja faced. It is a story where fear is conquered by courage.”

“It was eerie and moving because all those imperishable patriotic songs that we grew up with were playing. Neerja’s spirit was very much alive while Sonam spoke about her courage to the students of the school that Neerja once attended.” added Ram Madhvani.

Directed by Ram Madhvani and Produced by Fox Star Studio's and Bling Unplugged. Neerja is  a film based on the heroic story of Neerja Bhanot who sacrificed her life while saving passengers from terrorists on board the hijacked Pan Am Flight 73 on 5 September 1986. The film is all set to release on February 19th, 2016.