Shashi Tharoor joins the trend.

NEW DELHI: Congress MP Shashi Tharoor surprised the internet in the most charming way possible by revealing his inner Swiftie. Showing that even veteran lawmakers with overflowing schedules have time for pop culture, Tharoor recently shared a playful Instagram reel dancing to Taylor Swift’s hit track ‘The Fate of Ophelia.’The video, filmed inside what appears to be his book-lined workroom, offers a rare glimpse of the politician’s lighter side. Gently grooving to the music, Tharoor seemed to be enjoying a brief escape from his packed routine. Sharing the reel on Instagram, Tharoor wrote, “When you have 35,000 unread emails, 5,000 unopened WhatsApp messages and 15 op-eds to write, but the social media girl decides it’s content time.”His caption, delivered in his trademark witty style, said, “Somewhere between bilateral meetings at the Speaker’s Conference and the tyranny of my inbox, even a parliamentarian can become a Swiftie. Do the Swifties agree?” he wrote, instantly striking a chord online.The comments section soon turned into a fan fest. Social media users were both amused and impressed, with many celebrating what they dubbed Tharoor’s “pookie side”. Swifties, in particular, delighted in the unlikely crossover, flooding the post with hearts, inside jokes and lyrical nods.One user commented, “Pookie Tharoor — that social media girl is a rockstar,” while another joked, “She deserves a raise for turning the pookie into a Swiftie.” A third quipped, “The only man in the country who can listen to her songs without opening a dictionary.” Another wrote, “Tharoor in his Swiftie era wasn’t on my 2026 bingo card.”The song featured in the reel ‘The Fate of Ophelia’ is the lead single from Swift’s 2025 album ‘The Life of a Showgirl’. The track has been a global sensation, topping charts worldwide and enjoying a record-breaking run on the Billboard Hot charts.

MUMBAI: BMC has altered its spending pattern over the last two financial years. For the first time in recent history, the country’s richest civic body allocated a much larger portion of its annual budget to capital expenditure, while keeping revenue expenditure below half of the total outlay. This marked an aggressive push towards infrastructure creation and large-scale projects, a trend that has coincided with a period when BMC has been functioning without elected representatives.The change in priorities reflects massive investments in big-ticket infrastructure projects such as Coastal Road, Goregaon-Mulund Link Road (GMLR) and multiple sewage treatment plants (STPs). Each of these projects involves an outlay of over Rs 14,000 crore and is either currently under execution or has just been completed.

The 2024-25 financial year saw BMC record a historic capital expenditure of Rs 36,900 crore — the highest ever spent by it on infrastructure in a single year. This was nearly the entire Rs 37,332 crore earmarked for capital expenditure that year. Officials saidthe pace of spending has continued in the current financial year as well. In 2025-26, senior civic officials said nearly Rs 19,000 crore has already been spent on capital works. Explaining the sharp increase, an official noted that capital expenditure during 2020-21 and 2021-22 had remained relatively low due to Covid, when most major construction activities were stalled or slowed.“Over the last two years, several major infrastructure works have been taken up simultaneously,” the official said. These also include road concreting projects, water conveyance tunnels and over a dozen bridge projects suchas Gokhale, Hancock, Carnac, Delisle and Vidyavihar. “Since many of these projects were executed at the same time, capital expenditure has increased substantially,” the official said.While infrastructure spending has surged, BMC’s fixed deposits (FDs) have declined. The civic body’s FDs, which peaked at Rs 91,690 crore in 2022, have now reduced to around Rs 80,000 crore. One key reason for the earlier rise — from Rs 78,745 crore in 2020-21 to Rs 91,690 crore in 2021-22 — was substantial revenue generated through premiums collected from development works across the city.However, in Jan 2021, the state govt issued a resolution slashing construction premiums paid by builders by 50% after cabinet approval. A senior BMC official said part of the funds collected during this period was also diverted to other agencies.“Out of this amount, BMC had to share funds with the Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation, for which around Rs 2,000 crore was sanctioned,” the official said. “In addition, Rs 3,800 crore was given to MMRDA following a letter from the urban development department asking the municipal commissioner to contribute to metro rail projects,” the official said. BMC has also extended nearly Rs 2,000 crore in financial support to the BEST undertaking in the past year.But concerns remain about everyday civic needs. Milind Mhaske, CEO of Praja Foundation, said, “While large projects are important, basic services must not be ignored.” Advocate Godfrey Pimenta echoed this view, pointing to poor footpaths, internal roads and lack of open maidans in many areas. Political voices have also questioned accountability. Samajwadi Party MLA Rais Shaikh said the absence of corporators raised concerns about oversight. Civic officials maintained that all works are properly scrutinised and supervised through established administrative mechanisms.

Cricket in India is more than just a sport; it is an emotion that often transcends boundaries. Sometimes, quite literally. On Wednesday, January 14, 2026, during the high-stakes 2nd ODI between India and New Zealand at the Niranjan Shah Stadium in Rajkot, the cricketing world witnessed another instance where overwhelming fandom clashed with ground security protocols. While the match itself ended in disappointment for Team India, a mid-game incident involving a fan and Virat Kohli became the biggest talking point of the day, highlighting both the intense passion surrounding Indian cricket and the grace of its biggest superstar.

Fan breaches security to meet Virat Kohli in Rajkot ODI

The incident occurred during a crucial phase in the second innings. India had set a target of 286, and the Men in Blue were on the field, attempting to restrict the Kiwi batting lineup.

Suddenly, the attention of the capacity crowd and the television cameras shifted away from the pitch. A young male fan managed to evade the stadium security cordon, jump the advertising barricades, and make a dead sprint onto the outfield. His target was unambiguous: Kohli, who was fielding at the time. Before security personnel could react effectively, the fan had reached his idol.

Kohli’s class Act response after meeting his fan

In high-pressure sporting environments, unexpected pitch invasions can often lead to tense or aggressive reactions from players worried about their safety. However, Kohli’s handling of the situation was widely praised as a class act. As the breathless fan reached him and went in for an embrace, Kohli did not recoil or react with anger. Instead, he reciprocated with a brief side-hug, acknowledging the fan’s devotion.

The most significant moment, however, came seconds later. As ground security staff rushed in to apprehend the intruder and escort him off the field, Kohli was visibly seen gesturing to them. He signaled the guards to be gentle, asking them to remain calm and not manhandle the over-enthusiastic young man. It was a gesture of empathy that immediately went viral on social media, with fans applauding Kohli for his maturity and kindness even in the middle of a competitive match.

Here’s the video:

During the India vs New Zealand 2nd ODI, a fan of Virat Kohli jumped the fence at the Rajkot Stadium to meet him.

The security personnels caught the fan and beat him badly. 😅😭 pic.twitter.com/QrdnJeHo7e

— Jara (@JARA_Memer) January 14, 2026

Also READ: IND vs NZ: Virat Kohli shatters Sachin Tendulkar’s historic record despite quiet outing during 2nd ODI in Rajkot

A tough day at the office for India

Notably, throughout his career, especially in home series, Kohli has frequently been the target of pitch invaders hoping to touch his feet or get a hug. The sheer magnitude of his stardom means that for many, the risk of legal repercussions is outweighed by the chance of a momentary interaction with their hero.

Meanwhile, the heartwarming interaction was perhaps the only highlight of the day for Indian fans. On the cricketing front, it was a forgettable outing for the hosts. Earlier in the day, Kohli himself had a brief stay at the crease, scoring 23 runs before being bowled by Kristian Clarke. India posted 285, which proved insufficient on a good batting track. New Zealand chased down the target comfortably, winning by 7 wickets and leveling the three-match series 1-1.

Also READ: Shubman Gill reveals reasons behind India’s defeat in the second ODI against New Zealand

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NASA plans a mission to study the Sun’s magnetic heart and its hidden storms

NASA has selected a proposed solar mission for further study as part of its Small Explorer programme, extending early design work rather than approving a launch. The mission, known as the Chromospheric Magnetism Explorer, or CMEx, will now move into an extended Phase A study lasting 12 months, with a budget of two million dollars. This phase allows scientists and engineers to refine the concept and test whether it is ready for future consideration. CMEx is designed to focus on the Sun’s chromosphere, a thin and restless layer above the visible surface. Researchers believe this region holds key clues to how solar eruptions begin and how the solar wind forms. The mission builds on earlier experimental work but remains at a study stage only.

NASA’s CMEx is meant to observe the Sun’s magnetic heart

CMEx is planned as a single spacecraft mission using ultraviolet spectropolarimetric instruments. These tools have already been tested during NASA’s CLASP sounding rocket flight, which briefly sampled the chromosphere during a sub orbital mission. CMEx would take this approach further by making steady, long-term observations rather than short snapshots. Its main goal is to measure magnetic fields in the lower chromosphere, something that has not yet been done continuously. Scientists see this layer as a link between the Sun’s surface and its outer atmosphere, where solar storms grow stronger and more complex.

Sun’s chromosphere matters

The chromosphere, a thin but vibrant layer, is located just over the photosphere, the one that we perceive from Earth. It is a very volatile layer that sometimes changes within minutes, so it is difficult to study it through short-period observations. Magnetic fields in this area behave like a living organism; they grow by twisting and stretching, and just look at them, switching to new shapes by breaking free from the old ones. Such a change could release previously hidden energy in the form of heat and particles travelling at high speeds. This occurrence may severely affect all sorts of events, such as solar flares or coronal mass ejections, which are large clouds of charged material ejected from the Sun and capable of reaching Earth. A careful observation of this layer might be a significant breakthrough for scientists in predicting the early signs of such eruptions.

CMEx could improve space weather tracking

Solar wind is a constant stream of charged particles flowing outward from the Sun. It plays a major role in space weather near Earth, affecting satellites, communication systems, and power grids. Scientists believe the magnetic roots of the solar wind lie partly in the chromosphere. By tracking how magnetic fields there connect to those further out in space, CMEx could fill a long-standing gap in understanding. NASA officials say that better knowledge of these processes could improve forecasts of harmful solar activity, helping protect both spacecraft and astronauts operating near Earth, the Moon, or Mars.

What happens next for the mission

The current Phase A extension does not guarantee that CMEx will fly. Instead, it gives the team time to refine the mission design, assess risks, and confirm costs. The study is led by Holly Gilbert of the National Center for Atmospheric Research in Boulder, Colorado. CMEx was originally proposed under the 2022 Heliophysics Explorers Programme call, alongside other mission concepts. At the end of this extended study, NASA will decide whether the mission is ready to move forward. For now, CMEx remains a careful step toward seeing the Sun’s magnetic behaviour more clearly, without rushing ahead.

NEW DELHI: In a big setback to actor Vijay, the Supreme Court on Thursday refused to entertain a plea against an order of stay passed by a division bench of the Madras high court over the certification of his movie “Jana Nayagan”.The top court asked KVN production to raise its grievances before a division bench of the Madras HC, which is examining the issue.A bench of Justices Deepankar Datta and AG Masih asked the Madras high court to decide the matter by January 20.On January 9, the Madras high court stayed a single judge’s order directing the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) to immediately grant a censor certificate to Jana Nayagan, leaving the fate of actor-turned-politician Vijay’s film uncertain.KVN Productions LLP moved an appeal against the single judge’s directive, after a division bench of the high court last Friday put the order on hold and restrained the CBFC from issuing the certificate.Vijay recently launched his political party, the Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam.“Jana Nayagan”, widely projected as Vijay’s final film before his full-time entry into politics, was scheduled for a Pongal release on January 9. However, the release hit last-minute hurdles after the CBFC failed to issue certification in time.The division bench’s order came hours after Justice P T Asha directed the CBFC to clear “Jana Nayagan”, setting aside the film board’s decision to refer the matter to a review committee.Subsequently, the first bench comprising Chief Justice M M Shrivastava and Justice G Arul Murugan, acting on an appeal filed by the CBFC, granted an interim stay on the single judge’s verdict.Earlier, while allowing KVN Productions’ plea seeking a direction to the CBFC to issue the censor certificate, Justice Asha held that once the board had decided to grant certification, the chairperson had no authority to refer the film to a review committee.The film board immediately challenged the order before the division bench.