Darsheel Safary who is well known for his portrayal of Zeeshan, a dyslexic child, in Taare Zameen Par is all set to reunite with his co-star Aamir Khan. 

Safary shared a glimpse on Instagram, showing Khan in various avatars, including an astronaut and a tribal. 

The photo was captioned as “It is Aamir’s multiverse, and we’re all just living in it. 3 days to go.”

Earlier, Safary had shared a photo announcing their reunion, with Khan sporting long white hair and Safary all grown up. 

While not much is known about the project, however, it is said that the project is titled Sitaare Zameen Par and will see a role reversal of sorts.

As the seat-sharing tussle within the NDA over Bihar continues, the INDIA alliance has made a move on the political chessboard and offered eight Lok Sabha seats in the state and two in Uttar Pradesh to Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas) chief Chirag Paswan, sources have told NDTV. 

The offer may prove to be tempting to Mr Paswan, who is reportedly being offered only six Lok Sabha constituencies in Bihar by the NDA and even those come with a caveat – the seats will have to be split with his uncle and Rashtriya Lok Janshakti Party chief Pashupati Paras, who he is not on the best terms with. 

The INDIA alliance offer, on the other hand, includes all six seats that the undivided Lok Janshakti Party (LJP) had contested in 2019, and a deal sweetener in the form of two additional constituencies in Bihar and two in Uttar Pradesh, the sources said. 

The Lok Janshakti Party had split in 2021, following a coup by Mr Paras a year after the death of party chief and veteran leader Ram Vilas Paswan.

Mr Paswan was the brother of Mr Paras and father of Chirag Paswan. After Mr Paras was given a cabinet berth by the BJP-led NDA, Chirag Paswan had attacked the Janata Dal United and Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar. He had, however, refrained from targeting the BJP and PM Narendra Modi – whom he had earlier called his Ram and said he was his Hanuman.

Having quit the NDA in 2020 over differences with Mr Kumar, Chirag Paswan had rejoined the alliance last year, when the Bihar chief minister was a part of the Mahagathbandhan, which includes the Lalu Yadav-led Rashtriya Janata Dal and the Congress. Tensions have reportedly been bubbling under the surface ever since the JDU chief returned to the NDA earlier this year. 

There are also differences between Mr Paswan and Mr Paras over the latter’s Hajipur Lok Sabha constituency. While Mr Paras is the sitting MP from the seat, Mr Paswan has sought to stake claim to it because it was his late father’s former constituency and his “karmabhoomi”.

Seat Division

The BJP and the JDU had fought 17 Lok Sabha seats each in Bihar in 2019 and the six remaining constituencies had been contested by the LJP. The BJP and the LJP had won all the seats they had contested and the JDU had fallen short only in Kishanganj, which it had lost to the Congress. 

The bigger partners in the NDA are reportedly keen on repeating the same arrangement, leaving Mr Paras and Mr Paswan’s party to work out an understanding over the six seats the LJP had contested the last time.

For the Bihar Mahagathbandhan, however, 17 seats – which would have otherwise gone to the JDU – have been opened up. This has left them the room to manoeuvre and try and rope in Mr Paswan’s party.

If the move does work out, it will be a boost to the INDIA alliance, which has faced trouble in finalising seat-sharing in several states, including West Bengal and Punjab. Bihar, with its 40 seats, sends the fourth-highest number of MPs to the Lok Sabha and the INDIA alliance is fancying its chances of giving pause to the NDA juggernaut after the 39-1 rout it had faced its chances.

The blow to the NDA and the JDU could also act as a salve for the INDIA bloc, which is still smarting from Mr Kumar’s fresh volte-face in January. 

The ruling Biju Janata Dal (BJD) in Odisha has hinted at a potential alliance with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) ahead of the upcoming Lok Sabha elections. On Wednesday, leaders of the BJD convened for an extensive session at Naveen Niwas, the official residence of Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik. Simultaneously, counterparts from the BJP, including its state unit chief Manmohan Samal, gathered in the national capital for a parallel meeting, engaging in discussions related to electoral affairs, with a particular focus on the possibility of forging an alliance.

A potential pact between the two parties marks a significant shift in the political dynamics of the state, especially considering the BJD’s departure from the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) 15 years ago, which had prompted former BJP leader and minister Sushma Swaraj to say that Naveen Patnaik would “regret” snapping ties after an 11-year understanding. 

While no formal announcement has been made, BJD vice president and MLA Debi Prasad Mishra confirmed the discussions but stopped short of confirming the formation of an alliance. “Biju Janata Dal will prioritise the greater interests of the people of Odisha. Yes, there were discussions on the issue (alliance),” Mr Mishra told reporters after the meeting at Naveen Niwas.

A press release issued by the BJD stated, “An extensive discussion was held under the leadership of BJD president and Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik with the senior leaders of the party today regarding the strategy of the upcoming Lok Sabha and Vidhan Sabha elections.”

“It was resolved that since by 2036, Odisha will complete 100 years of its statehood, and BJD and Chief Minister Patnaik have major milestones to be achieved by this time, therefore Biju Janata Dal will do everything towards this in the greater interests of people of Odisha,” the statement added.

On the BJP side, senior leader and MP Jual Oram, after the meeting presided over by BJP president JP Nadda in Delhi, confirmed discussions on a pre-poll alliance with the BJD. However, he added that the final decision rests with the party’s central leadership. “Yes, there were discussions on the alliance among other issues. The party’s central leadership will make the final call,” Mr Oram stated.

The Numbers 

The strategic importance of Odisha, with its 21 Lok Sabha seats and 147 assembly seats, is not lost on either party. In the 2019 elections, BJD and BJP secured 12 and eight parliamentary constituencies and 112 and 23 assembly constituencies, respectively. According to sources, in the event of an alliance, the BJP would contest the majority of Lok Sabha seats, while the BJD would focus on assembly seats.

The growing speculation about the alliance gained credence from the recent public praises exchanged between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chief Minister Patnaik. Both leaders acknowledged each other’s contributions, with the BJD demonstrating support for the Modi government’s agenda in Parliament.

What Happened In 2009 

The BJD-BJP alliance saw success in two assembly elections and three Lok Sabha polls in Odisha. The partnership, forged in February 1998, enjoyed a strong foundation, with both parties successfully contesting Lok Sabha elections in 1998, 1999, and 2004, as well as assembly elections in 2000 and 2004.

Once considered the BJP’s most reliable ally in the NDA, the alliance collapsed in 2009 following failed seat-sharing talks. The breakdown was officially attributed to the BJD’s demand for a reduction in the BJP’s share of assembly seats from 63 to around 40, and parliamentary seats from nine to six. This demand, deemed unreasonable by the BJP leaders, led to the withdrawal of support to Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik’s government, marking the end of an 11-year political marriage. 

The withdrawal of support was termed by BJD as an “act of betrayal”.

The BJD-BJP pact was formed in 1998, orchestrated by senior leaders Bijay Mohapatra and the late Pramod Mahajan.