No war, no peace: Is India's military ready for the new normal?

Reddy for action: Telangana Chief Minister Revanth Reddy has decided that vehicle owners in the state have taken his goodwill for granted. On coming to power in 2023, he announced a 90 per cent discount on pending traffic fines. While law-abiding citizens who had paid their dues on time quietly regretted the “missed opportunity”, most vehicle owners were delighted to see their fine amounts shrink. But, Reddy now believes the move backfired. Many motorists, he observed, stopped paying fines, expecting another round of discounts. Unhappy with this mindset, the chief minister ordered a course correction, telling traffic police to make arrangements for an auto-debit system that would deduct fines directly from vehicle owners’ bank accounts | Illustrations by Job P.K.

Fashionably late: A lunchtime interaction hosted by Union Minister for Science and Technology and Earth Sciences Dr Jitendra Singh at his official residence, 4 Kushak Road, offered a small lesson in Lutyens Delhi punctuality. Though journalists were asked to be present at 1pm, they began arriving only after 1:30pm. Eventually, the minister himself stepped in once a reasonable number had assembled. It seems that even a Union minister’s invitation can sometimes be treated like a flexible social engagement.

Harvesting votes: Pongal gift hampers have become the order of the day in Tamil Nadu. With elections just around 80 days away, giveaways have taken many forms across constituencies. Topping the Pongal goodies list is the DMK’s K.N. Nehru. In Trichy West, he rolled out premium Pongal hampers worth Rs2,500 each for 3,000 people. The package included four stainless steel plates, four tumblers, two cooking pans, a shirt and trousers and a sari. In nearby Viralimalai, former AIADMK minister Dr C. Vijayabhaskar distributed Pongal kits worth 800 each to 80,000 ration card holders. Not to be left behind, the DMK’s Karur strongman V. Senthil Balaji is preparing to distribute bronze pots. For political leaders, Pongal is clearly a harvest season of a different kind.

Dazzling fan club: Yami Gautam’s performance in Haq is getting highly praised by the likes of Samantha Ruth Prabhu, Alia Bhatt and Karan Johar. “To say that Yami Gautam is brilliant, outstanding, path-breaking is still not saying enough,” said Johar. “Her silences, her stares, her last monologue and her stance throughout the film is a masterclass of craft and conviction. Salute and salaam to her.” Co-starring Emraan Hashmi and directed by Suparn Verma, Haq is a courtroom drama inspired by the Shah Bano case, exploring a woman’s fight for justice and the intricate interplay of faith, women’s rights and social customs in India | Getty Images

A legal victory: In a major relief for actor Saif Ali Khan and the Pataudi family, a Bhopal court ruled in their favour in a land dispute, where three petitioners had claimed ownership of 16.62 acres in the Nayapura area of Madhya Pradesh belonging to the erstwhile royal family. They argued that the property had been gifted to their father by the last ruling Nawab of Bhopal in 1936, but the court rejected the claim because of insufficient proof of ownership. The Pataudis have been involved in the legal fight for more than two decades | Amey Mansabdar

The Midas touch: It seems everything Zoe Saldana touches turns to cash. She has become the highest-grossing actor of all time, having overtaken Scarlett Johansson after the success of her film Avatar: Fire and Ash. Saldana’s films—which include franchises like Avatar, Guardians of the Galaxy, Avengers and Star Trek—have now made more than $15.46 billion worldwide. Saldana also won the Oscar for best supporting actress last year for her role in Emilia Perez, thus becoming the first Dominican American to do so. On Instagram, she gave a shout-out to all her directors, from Star Trek helmer J.J. Abrams to Avatar’s James Cameron for “seeing something in me that I have not always seen in myself” | Getty Images

Young achiever: Timothee Chalamet, who turned 30 in December, is the youngest to win the best actor award at three different events: Golden Globes, Critics’ Choice and the Actor Awards (previously SAG Awards). “My dad instilled in me a spirit of gratitude growing up,” said Chalamet upon winning the Golden Globe for his role in Marty Supreme. “Always be grateful for what you have. It has allowed me to leave this ceremony in the past empty-handed, my head held high, grateful to just be here....” Unfortunately, if he wins the Oscar for best actor in March, he will not be the youngest, having missed the mark by just a year; Adrien Brody won it in 2003 at the ripe young age of 29 | Getty Images