Voters across several US states are heading to polling stations to decide which party controls the House and Senate. Meanwhile, the Bombay high court said the removal of Dia Mirza’s Diwali video was “very unfortunate” and contrary to the “secular spirit” of the country. These events mark a busy Tuesday.
Voters across several US states are heading to polling stations, joining millions who have already cast their ballots ahead of Election Day. Polling stations have opened in some East Coast states, including Connecticut, Maine, New York and New Jersey, as well as parts of Kentucky and Indiana.
Voters will decide which party controls the US House of Representatives and the Senate. Democrats need to win four additional Senate seats and three House seats to take control of both chambers from Republicans. The Senate races in Alaska, Iowa, Kansas, Maine, Michigan, Ohio and Texas are among the key contests to watch. House battlegrounds are spread across the country. Track live updates here.
Dia Mirza's Diwali video removal unfortunate, contrary to secular spirit: Bombay high court
The removal of actor Dia Mirza’s video for the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC)'s eco-friendly Diwali campaign was “very unfortunate” and contrary to the “secular spirit” of the country, the Bombay high court said on Tuesday.
The court’s remarks came amid a massive row in the state, after the civic body selectively removed the actor’s clip from social media following objections from a Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader and mayor Ritu Tawde's comments labelling her as "anti-Hindu". Mirza, however, said efforts to reduce air pollution should be welcomed as it is a matter of public health. Read more.
Ranbir Kapoor says he doen't like the term ‘Bollywood’ as it derives from Hollywood
Actor Ranbir Kapoor has made his stance clear on the use of the term ‘Bollywood’ to describe Hindi cinema, or sometimes all of Indian cinema. In an interview with a British media outlet, Ranbir agreed he was not a fan of the term and would prefer to be known as an Indian actor rather than a Bollywood star.
Ranbir is promoting his upcoming film, Ramayana, for which he was recently in London along with castmates Sai Pallavi and Yash. There, the actor spoke to ITV where the host asked him why he was not a fan of the ‘umbrella term Bollywood’ used to describe Indian films. Ranbir responded, “I think it's just a term used as a derivative of Hollywood. Because it was Bombay at that time, so it became Bollywood, and the Telugu industry became Tollywood, and they had all these different-sounding names.” Read more.
Badminton fund row: SAI, BAI administrative tussle left players to fend for themselves