Pawan Kalyan’s ‘Ustaad Bhagat Singh’ is creating massive buzz ahead of its March 19th release. Early reviews hail it as ‘Paisa Vasool,’ with advance bookings already crossing Rs 120 crore. Andhra Pradesh has approved a temporary ticket price hike, and special early morning benefit shows are planned, promising a grand opening for the action entertainer.

The upcoming Telugu action entertainer ‘Ustaad Bhagat Singh’ has started generating strong hype even before its theatrical release. Starring Pawan Kalyan in the lead role, the film is scheduled to hit theatres on March 19, 2026 and it coincides with the festive occasion of Ugadi. With just days left for the premiere, an early review has started circulating on social media.

Early review calls it ‘Paisa vasool’

On March 11, film personality Umair Sandhu shared his first impressions of the film on X. Sharing his reaction, he wrote, “#PawanKalyan Entry Scene is Paisa Vasool ! Watching Overseas Censor Screening #UstaadBhagatSingh !.”

Advance booking buzz crosses Rs 120 crore mark

Even before its release ‘Ustaad Bhagat Singh’ has reportedly generated impressive business through advance bookings. As reported by Money Control, the film has already recorded significant ticket sales across Telugu-speaking regions and also the film has earned nearly Rs 120 crore in advance booking sales in the states of Telangana and Andhra Pradesh.

Ticket price hike approved in Andhra Pradesh

Ahead of the film’s release, the government of Andhra Pradesh has approved a temporary ticket price hike for Ustaad Bhagat Singh as reported by 123 Telugu website. A new Government Order confirming the revised pricing has also surfaced online.According to the order, single-screen theatres can increase ticket prices by Rs 100, including GST. This brings the revised ticket rate to Rs 247.For multiplex theatres, ticket prices can be increased by Rs 125, including GST. The revised multiplex fare will be Rs 302.These enhanced ticket prices will remain in effect for ten days starting from March 19.

Benefit shows planned for early morning screenings

As per the same Government Order, the film will not have premiere shows before its official release. Instead, a special benefit show will be screened on the release day itself. The benefit show will take place on March 19. It will begin early in the morning between 4 AM and 5 AM.The ticket price for this special show has been fixed at Rs 500, including GST. Additionally, theatres have been permitted to screen five shows per day for the first ten days of release.Interestingly, the project was initially scheduled for release on March 26. The makers later decided to advance the release by a week, bringing it to theatres earlier than planned.Directed by Harish Shankar, the film also features Sreeleela, Raashii Khanna, and R. Parthiban in key roles. On the other hand, Pawan Kalyan’s previous film was ‘OG’.

MUMBAI: Kandivli resident Deonandan Prasad Singh (54) was killed after the Marshall Islands-flagged oil tanker MT Safesea Vishnu, on which he was serving, came under attack near Khor Al Zubair Port, close to Basra, Iraq, on Wednesday, according to the director general of shipping, ministry of port, shipping and waterways.In a press release on March 12, the ministry had confirmed the death of one Indian seafarer. An official said Singh, serving as the additional chief engineer (superintendent) aboard the vessel, died following the attack. Singh’s family alleged he had been on shore duty for over seven years after leaving sailing work, having served on the engineering side for almost 25 years, before the company forced him to rejoin a ship three days before the war began when the US and Israel attacked Iran on Feb 28.“Singh was killed almost two weeks after joined the vessel at Iraq. It is sort of forcing him to join as he has signed the agreement with the company and in a corporate world one has to abide the company’s rules and regulations. Despite having stopped sailing and having taken a shore desk job, he was sent to die. The company forced him to join the ship as per the contract clause he had signed and joined the ship in Iraq three days prior to the war began,” a family member said.“Singh sustained severe injuries during the incident and later succumbed to them. Authorities and relevant maritime agencies have been informed, and an investigation into the circumstances surrounding the attack is underway,” a ministry official said.Following the incident, all crew members abandoned the vessel and entered the water. They were rescued by an STS tug. The Iraqi Coast Guard evacuated all 28 crew members, including 16 Indian nationals and 12 Filipino nationals, and transported them the port of Basra.The DG Shipping office in Mumbai remained tight-lipped. The shipping company, Executive Management or Bravo Shipping Management, was yet to revert to a mail sent by TOI. The management of MT Safesea Vishnu and associated stakeholders expressed condolences to Singh’s family.The alumni cell of BIT Sindri posted a condolence message on on Facebook.

Abrar Ahmed and Kavya Maran (PTI/IPL Photo)

NEW DELHI: The signing of Pakistan spinner Abrar Ahmed by Sunrisers Leeds in The Hundred has sparked debate online, but the BCCI, through its vice president Rajeev Shukla, has distanced itself. The franchise, owned by the Sun Group, which also runs Sunrisers Hyderabad in the IPL, bought Abrar for GBP 190,000 (around Rs 2.34 crore) during Thursday’s auction after a bidding battle with Trent Rockets. The tournament will take place from July 21 to August 16.

BCCI vice-president Rajeev Shukla made it clear that the Indian board does not control decisions made in overseas leagues. “It doesn’t concern us. It’s not the IPL. What happens in The Hundred or other overseas leagues, we have nothing to do with it,” Shukla told PTI.Abrar’s signing triggered backlash on social media, and the Sunrisers Leeds X account was suspended briefly. The reaction reflects the long-standing absence of Pakistani players in the IPL since 2009, when worsening diplomatic relations between India and Pakistan effectively ended their participation in the league.Sunrisers Leeds came under the Sun Group’s control last year after it bought a 49% stake from the England and Wales Cricket Board and the remaining 51% from Yorkshire for about GBP 100 million. Sunrisers CEO Kavya Maran attended the auction.Interestingly, Abrar wasn’t the only Pakistan player picked in the auction. Mystery spinner Usman Tariq was earlier bought by Birmingham Phoenix for GBP 140,000, though that team has no IPL links.Despite the IPL ban, Pakistani players have still appeared in overseas leagues for teams connected to IPL owners. Recently, Several Pakistani cricketers have played for Indian-owned or co-owned franchises in overseas T20 leagues.Imad Wasim featured for Abu Dhabi Knight Riders in the ILT20 in 2023–24 and later for Seattle Orcas in Major League Cricket in 2024 and 2025, a team co-owned by the Delhi Capitals’ GMR Group. Zaman Khan also played for Seattle Orcas in MLC 2024. The same year, Mohammad Amir and Usman Tariq played for Trinbago Knight Riders in the CPL, a franchise owned by Kolkata Knight Riders.

Representative image (AP)

NEW DELHI: Iran has allowed two India-flagged liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) carriers to transit through the Strait of Hormuz amid the ongoing conflict in the Middle East, Reuters reported citing four sources with direct knowledge of the matter.The development comes as Iran’s Ambassador to India, Mohammad Fathali, confirmed that Tehran would provide safe passage to vessels bound for India through the Strait of Hormuz, one of the world’s most critical routes for global energy trade.Responding to a question on whether Iran would allow Indian-bound ships safe transit through the strait, Fathali said, “Yes. Because India and I are friends. You can see the future, and I think that after two or three hours. Because we believe that. We believe that Iran and India are friends. We have common interests; we have a common fate.”He also highlighted the mutual responsibility between the two countries. “Suffering of the people of India is our suffering and vice versa. And for this reason, the government of India help us, and we should help the government of India because we have a common fate and common interest,” he added.Meanwhile, Reuters, citing two sources and shipping data from Lloyd’s List Intelligence, reported that a crude oil tanker carrying Saudi Arabian oil is expected to arrive in India on Saturday after transiting the Strait of Hormuz around March 1.Separately, Iranian foreign minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi criticised the United States over its stance on Russian oil, saying Washington is now “begging” countries, including India, to buy Russian crude despite earlier pressure to stop such imports.In a post on X, Araghchi said, “The US spent months on bullying India into ending oil imports from Russia. After two weeks of war with Iran, White House is now begging the world–including India–to buy Russian crude.”He also criticised European countries for supporting what he called an “illegal war” against Iran.“Europe thought backing illegal war on Iran would win US support against Russia. Pathetic,” he said.

Mumbai: The Maharashtra Freedom of Religion Bill, 2026 aimed at preventing religious conversions through coercion, fraud or marriage, says any child born out of a marriage or a “relationship in the nature of a marriage” due to unlawful conversion shall be “deemed to belong to the religion of the mother before such marriage or relationship”.The Bill mandates that any person intending to convert as well as any individual or institution organising a conversion ceremony, must give a notice at least 60 days in advance to the competent authority. The competent authority will then display details of the proposed conversion on its office notice board and the office of the village panchayat or local authority concerned and invite objections from the public within 30 days.The Bill requires that the converted person and individual or institution organising the ceremony submit a declaration to the same authority within 21 days after the conversion. It allows any person including the converted person’s parents, siblings or relatives by blood, marriage or adoption to lodge an FIR if they suspect unlawful conversion and mandates police to register such complaints.While setting a jail term of seven years and a fine of Rs 1 lakh for those “involved” in illegal conversion, it prescribes similar punishment for those “involved” in mass conversions and a fine of Rs 5 lakh. Repeat individual offenders can get a jail sentence of 10 years and fine of Rs 5 lakh. Inducements seen as illegal in such cases include gifts, employment, free education, better lifestyle or divine healing, Under the proposed law, the burden of proof that a conversion was not carried out in violation of the Act will lie on the person who caused, assisted or abetted the conversion.The bill, described as draconian by critics, says “forceful” and “involuntary” religious conversions in the state are increasing and that Maharashtra has no mechanism to stop them. It cites the example of other states which have passed similar laws.“Right to freedom of religion… under the Constitution of India is not absolute, but is subject to public order, morality, health and to other provisions of… Constitution relating to the fundamental rights of citizens. The Supreme Court… has in many cases held that the freedom of religion is subject to reasonable restrictions and right to propagate under article 25 of the Constitution does not include the right to forcibly convert another person,” says the Bill.It says, “religious conversions which are forceful, involuntary or caused by influencing free consent” are rising and are “being carried out in organized manner by various institutions.” It says various states have already enacted laws to prohibit them. “The objective is to protect the right to freedom of religion. It also aims to prohibit unlawful religious conversions carried out through coercion, fraud, inducement or marriage,” said minister of state for home Pankaj Bhoyar, who introduced the bill in the assembly.Civil society bodies who opposed the bill in the run-up to its introduction in the assembly, called for a dialogue. “We are very disappointed that the bill was tabled without discussions with stakeholders who are going to be affected by this Anti-Conversion Law. It takes away the right to one’s conscience to follow the religion of their choice or marry a partner of their choice. We urge the Opposition to raise their voices and also demand that it be referred to a Select Committee for discussions as some of the clauses are draconian,” said Dolphy D’souza of The Bombay Catholic Sabha.Legal challenges against anti-conversion laws by civil rights groups such as Citizens for Justice and Peace have been taken up by the high courts in Karnataka, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand and Madhya Pradesh. Sections of these laws have been stayed by the courts and states have, in turn, gone on appeal before the Supreme Court. In Maharashtra, BJP leaders had promised during the last assembly poll campaign that an anti-conversion law would be brought to combat “love jihad”.(With inputs by Vijay V Singh)

A hilarious incident took place in the second ODI between Pakistan and Bangladesh, as all-rounder spinner Mehidy Hasan Miraz dismissed Pakistan batter Salman Ali Agha in one of the most unconventional fashions.

Pakistan are currently on their tour to Bangladesh and is playing in a three-match ODI series. This marks Bangladesh’s return to international cricket, and they made a promising start by winning the first game of the series.

Pakistan, however, made a convincing start to the second ODI with a big opening partnership, and their middle-order batters, Mohammad Rizwan and Salman Ali Agha, did a fair amount of work to keep the scoreboard running. However, what happened after has shocked the cricketing world.

Your daily dose of cricket!

Mehidy Hasan Miraz stoops to the lowest to dismiss Pakistan’s batter

Mehidy Hasan Miraz came back to bowl the 39th over of the spell, and Pakistan batters Salman Ali Agha and Mohammad Rizwan both looked forward to building a solid partnership. While Rizwan was nearing his half-century, Agha was going at a run-a-ball with the score of 64.

Rizwan played a straight shot right back towards the non-striker, and Salman Agha failed to dodge it, and the ball was stopped after it hit his pads. The Pakistani batter went to pick up the ball and hand it over to Mehidy Hasan Miraz as a part of sportsmanship, but the Bangladeshi all-rounder was nothing but competitive.

He instead picked the ball and threw it at the stumps, since Agha was out of his crease and appealed for a run-out. The umpire had to abide by the cricketing laws, and Agha was given out.

Salman Ali Agha tried to pick up the ball and give it back to the bowler, but the bowler ran him out. 😭

Another day, another joker moment for Pakistan.🤣🤣🤣 pic.twitter.com/GqD3etuY77

— 𝐊𝐨𝐡𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐚𝐭!𝟎𝐧_👑🚩 (@bholination) March 13, 2026

Mehidy Hasan Miraz dismissed Mohammad Rizwan in the same over

After the shocking dismissal, Salman Agha looked visibly agitated and left the field. This led to a collapse in the Pakistan innings, as Mohammad Rizwan, who was the only set batter in the crease, was dismissed by the Bangladesh skipper on the final ball of that over.

The former ODI skipper for Pakistan departed after a well-made 44, which once gave stability in the middle overs. However, just when Pakistan needed to accelerate in their slog overs, they kept losing wickets and were bowled out for just 274 runs after having made a good start.

Before Agha’s dismissal, Pakistan was at 231/3, with Maaz Sadaqat, the young 20-year-old strokemaker, having handed the Greens a very promising start. He gave them a solid start with a century partnership with Pakistan’s T20 World Cup hero Sahibzada Farhan.

Bangladesh handed Pakistan a humiliating loss in the 1st ODI

Pakistan had started the ODI series with a humiliating defeat in the first game. Nahid Rana, the lanky Bangladesh speedster, almost ran a rampage as Pakistan was bowled out for a score of 114 in just 30.4 overs. Bowling all-rounder Faheem Ashraf remained their highest scorer with 37 runs.

Taskin Ahmed and Mustafizur Rahman picked up a wicket each, while Nahid Rana, the star of the game for the home side, dismissed 5 of the Pakistan batters. The skipper, Mehidy Hasan Miraz, also picked up three wickets in the match.

Bangladesh batter Tanzid Hasan scored an unbeaten half-century as they chased the total with 209 balls remaining. They took a convincing lead, winning the game by 8 wickets.

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Mumbai: With the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) advising state pollution regulators to temporarily allow industries, hotels and restaurants to use alternate fuels in view of LPG supply constraints, the Maharashtra Pollution Control Board (MPCB) chairman Siddhesh Kadam said his department was drafting a proposal to expedite it. A final call, however, will be taken by the state govt. In the meantime, several restaurants have begun using pellets, coal, biomass, etc. In an advisory issued on March 12 to all PCBs and Pollution Control Committees (PCCs), the CPCB said establishments operating under Consent to Operate (CTO) are usually required to use specific approved fuels so that emissions remain within prescribed norms. Bombay High Court had also stressed that public health and the right to clean air must take precedence over commercial considerations while dealing with pollution sources in Mumbai. Hearing PILs on rising pollution, the court had directed authorities to ensure that bakeries, restaurants and other establishments shift from wood- or coal-based ovens to cleaner fuels.However, citing an “extraordinary situation” caused by LNG supply disruption, the national pollution watchdog said state regulators may permit temporary use of alternate fuels after consulting the respective state govts or Union Territory administrations.According to the advisory, establishments may be allowed to switch to fuels such as biomass or refuse-derived fuel (RDF) pellets in place of PNG for a limited period. The CPCB clarified that such permission should be granted only for a short duration and not exceeding one month from the date of issuance of the advisory.The board also said that if these alternative fuels are not available, use of kerosene or coal could be considered as a temporary option, subject to consultation with the state govt and compliance with directions issued by courts or other competent authorities.The move comes amid fuel supply disruptions that have affected commercial establishments, particularly eateries and small industrial units, in major cities. Restaurants and small businesses rely heavily on PNG or LPG for daily operations.Officials said the temporary relaxation is aimed at ensuring that commercial activity is not disrupted. Environmental groups, however, cautioned that allowing kerosene or coal could worsen air quality in the city at a time when rising heat and humidity already contribute to deteriorating pollution levels.Stakeholders in the oil sector too questioned the viability of the move. Fuel dealer Kedar Chandak said bulk kerosene stocks rarely exist since the banning of the fuel a few years ago. The Indian Hotel and Restaurant Association president, Vijay Shetty, said even finding coal for his restaurant was difficult.

President Donald Trump said the United States carried out “the most powerful bombing raid” on Iran’s Kharg Island, claiming that American forces “totally obliterated” military targets there while choosing not to destroy the island’s oil infrastructure.Kharg Island, located in the Persian Gulf, is the primary terminal through which Iran’s oil exports pass, making it a key part of the country’s energy sector.Trump announced the operation in a Truth Social post late Friday (US local time). “Moments ago, at my direction, the United States Central Command executed one of the most powerful bombing raids in the History of the Middle East, and totally obliterated every MILITARY target in Iran’s crown jewel, Kharg Island,” Trump wrote.He said the United States deliberately avoided striking the island’s oil facilities.“Our Weapons are the most powerful and sophisticated that the World has ever known but, for reasons of decency, I have chosen NOT to wipe out the Oil Infrastructure on the Island,” he added.

Trump also warned Iran against interfering with international shipping in the region.“However, should Iran, or anyone else, do anything to interfere with the Free and Safe Passage of Ships through the Strait of Hormuz, I will immediately reconsider this decision,” Trump continued. “Iran has NO ability to defend anything that we want to attack — There is nothing they can do about it!”The strikes come as the US military ordered 2,500 Marines and an amphibious assault ship to the Middle East, according to a US official, marking a major reinforcement of forces in the region after nearly two weeks of war with Iran.A large explosion struck a central square in Tehran where thousands had gathered for an annual state-organized rally supporting the Palestinians and calling for Israel’s destruction. Israel had earlier warned it would target the area.There were no immediate reports of casualties. The decision to proceed with the mass demonstration, attended by some senior government officials despite the threat, highlighted the tense atmosphere surrounding the conflict.Iran has continued to launch widespread missile and drone attacks on Israel and neighboring Gulf states, and has effectively closed the Strait of Hormuz, a critical waterway through which about one-fifth of the world’s traded oil passes.These developments come amid a rapidly escalating conflict involving the United States, Israel and Iran that has triggered missile strikes, drone attacks and growing instability across the Gulf.