Actor Akshay Kumar has put his naval officer costume from his 2016 hit Rustom, up for auctioning. The proceeds will go to the NGO Janice’s Trust, which works for animal rescue. The auction is fetching interesting amount and will be on for a month. Akshay had shared the news through a tweet on April 26, which his wife actor-turned-author Twinkle Khanna retweeted, to encourage people to donate for the cause.

While some are criticising the fact that a uniform is being auctioned, this is what Akshay has to say, “I am really happy that something so close to my heart — the costume I wore as Rustom Pavri, the character that got me the honour of the National Award — is being used for such a noble cause. Someone asked me why I would want to give up the costume, but my only answer was, what good is it to have it lying in the wardrobe? If it can give life to animals in need of treatment, there can’t be a bigger joy for me.”

Trade analyst Atul Mohan says, “It’s a great thing that a costume can be used for raising money that can be helpful to someone. There are Bollywood fans everywhere around the world, and Akshay has established himself as a star around the globe. If he can use his celebrity status for a noble cause, then why not.”

Moneycontrol.com quoted Komal Hiranandani, founder of the auctioning site SaltScout.com as saying, “Interestingly most queries and highest bids came from smaller cities like Bharatpur and others.”