Mumbai, Sep 9 (IANS): Urging the people to be safe and responsible, Bollywood celebrities like Farhan Akhtar, Shilpa Shetty and Sachin Pilgaonkar said that it is important to ensure safety and be self-reliant but people also need to cooperate and help police in that.

The actors were present at a programme organised by the Mumbai police Saturday to create awareness among the Ganesh mandals about the safety and security during the ten-day Ganesh festival, which started Monday.

"If we will also help the police, then nobody will get any chance to do bad or something evil. There are such nuisance elements in every society. But to stand against them, don't depend on police only, instead get along with the police and help," Sachin Pilagaonkar told reporters here.

"When you will do this, nobody will dare to think or do anything," he said.

Farhan feels that Ganesh Chaturthi "is an occassion of happiness" and one should enjoy it.

"Now police is doing its work but we should also do whatever we can. We should always keep the city safe not just because its Ganesh Chaturthi," he added.

Shilpa recommended women to be "self-reliant" and "be aware of surroundings".

"Be aware of your surroundings and I think it is very important to be a responsible citizen in times like this. It's very important to be self-reliant," Shilpa said.

"Obviously police is there to help but I think every woman should be confident and not get afraid in such situations," she added.