Neerja Bhanot's family charged this for Sonam Kapoor's film

Sonam Kapoor's Neerja, the biopic on India's youngest recipient of the Ashok Chakra Neerja Bhanot, has been in the news for a while now. Ever since the trailer of Neerja was released, social media has been all praise for it. And if the makers of Neerja are to be believed, Bhanot's family hasn't charged a single penny for the rights to the story.

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When the idea of making a film on the Pan Am Flight 73 hijack case occured to the team of Neerja, the incident that left 22-year-old Neerja Bhanot a hero to the country, they got in touch with her family in Chandigarh. The team met Neerja's mother Rama Bhanot and her brothers to discuss the idea of making a film on the late flight attendant.

To the team's request of making a film on Neerja Bhanot's life, her family had only one request in turn: that the film keep Neerja's honour intact through the movie.

Now that the Sonam Kapoor-starrer is inching towards its release date, February 19, the Bhanot family is said to be pretty happy with the way the film has shaped up.

Sonam too met Rama Bhanot, Neerja's mother, in Chandigarh. Bhanot, who passed away recently, had said how she felt her own daughter had walked into her house when Kapoor walked in.

"We are all touched by Neerja's family's gesture (of not asking for any money). We have all given more than our 100 per cent to live up to their expectations and do full justice to Neerja's story," says director Ram Madhvani.

The film, which sees Sonam Kapoor stepping into the shoes of Neerja Bhanot, who died trying to save 359 passengers on board the Pan Am Flight 73 on September 5, 1986, is slated for a February 19 release.