New face of governance: How personal branding is reshaping state elections

‘Fun’damental right: Recently, the Supreme Court dismissed a plea seeking a holiday for Guru Gobind Singh Jayanti. But the discussion on holidays did not go unnoticed by Justice Sandeep Mehta, who remarked that India is a holy country of holidays. In India, holidays are not just days off, they are a matter of emotion, identity and occasionally, long weekend planning. That said, it now seems the Supreme Court has to address the toughest constitutional questions as well as pleas relating to the right to holidays | Illustrations by Job P.K.

Sharp contrast: BJP Kerala state president Rajeev Chandrashekar is possibly the wealthiest candidate in the state’s assembly polls, with declared assets of more than Rs93 crore; opponents allege that assets worth around Rs200 crore were not disclosed. What has got public attention, however, is something modest—the sharpened pencil he invariably carries in his pocket. Chandrashekar says the habit goes back three decades. Pencils, he says, are cheaper than pens and easier to replace, and he tends to lose pens frequently. The revelation has since sparked chatter on social media, with some questioning whether the state’s richest candidate is also its most miserly.

One-man fan army: If you are a comic book lover, it is unlikely you have not heard of Hollywood director Zack Snyder—the man behind films like Dawn of the Dead, 300, Justice League and Man of Steel. We are all his fans, but guess who he is a fan of? Huma Qureshi. He recently called her “one of the most amazing actors I have had the pleasure of working with”. In response, Qureshi wrote, “You the best... boss man.” They worked together on the post-apocalyptic zombie film Army of the Dead (2021), which also marked the Bollywood actor’s debut in Hollywood. In it, she plays a single mother living in a refugee camp outside the zombie-filled Las Vegas. Snyder was so impressed with her performance that he said afterwards that he only wanted to cast Indian actors in his future movies. High praise, indeed! | PTI

Space race: Ryan Gosling’s Project Hail Mary is soaring high, after overtaking James Cameron’s Avatar: Fire and Ash to become the highest-grossing Hollywood film of the year. Two weeks since its release, the film grossed $164.3 million in the US, compared with Avatar’s net domestic earning of $153.7 million. Directed by Phil Lord and Chris Miller and adapted from the eponymous book by Andy Weir (of The Martian fame), Project Hail Mary is about a middle school science teacher who goes to space to save humanity. Critics have given it glowing reviews, comparing it with the sci-fi greats of Steven Spielberg and Stanley Kubrick. Now the question is, can it come out on top in what might turn out to be an epic battle with the just released The Super Mario Galaxy Movie | Getty Images

A bookaholic’s dream: British pop star Dua Lipa has great taste—whether it be in men, music or movies. This is especially true of books, being a voracious reader herself. Through her book club Service 95, she has interviewed authors like Margaret Atwood and the recent Booker Prize winner David Szalay. But now, she’s going a step further by curating the London literature festival this year. Now in its 19th year, the festival has been headlined by the likes of Ai Wei Wei, Greta Thunberg and Malala Yousafzai. Lipa said curating it is a dream come true. “I’m thrilled to indulge one of my greatest obsessions: books and the brilliant minds behind them,” she said. The organisers say that the festival will feature a mix of “favourite writers” chosen by Lipa and new literary voices | AFP

High X-pectations: For many 1990s kids, the height of paranormal fun was watching The X-Files, as special agents Fox Mulder and Dana Scully investigated unsolved mysteries in the FBI’s closed-down division of the X-Files. And now, the show is getting a reboot, with the pilot episode to be directed by Ryan Coogler, who helmed the Oscar-winning Sinners this year. The cherry on the cake? Actor Himesh Patel will play one of the lead characters along with Danielle Deadwyler, although we hear that their characters will be radically different from Mulder and Scully. Patel has previously starred in such prestigious projects as Danny Boyle’s Yesterday and Christopher Nolan’s Tenet. This will be the first reboot of The X-Files, and we can’t wait to find out what new skeletons are hiding in the cupboard | Getty Images