Maharashtra polls: Akshay Kumar praises arrangements at booth; Farhan Akhtar asks people to contribute as citizens

As the Maharashtra Assembly elections began on Wednesday, many celebrities were seen at polling stations casting their votes.

Several videos and pictures of Akshay Kumar, Farhan Akhtar, Zoya Akhtar, Rajkummar Rao, and Kabir Khan, among others, emerged on social media platforms as they arrived at polling booths early in the morning.

Akshay casts his vote, interacts with media
Akshay was seen interacting with a person as he exited the polling station. The reporters stationed outside the polling booth asked him to show his inked finger. Akshay said, “The best thing is the arrangements are really good. I saw that planning was done well for senior citizens. It’s clean too. Yahi hai ki sab log aaye, vote kare (Everyone should come and vote). That is the most important thing.”

A reporter told Akshay that he came early to cast his vote. The actor laughed and replied that even the reporter had come early, even before him. A person was seen having a brief conversation with the actor. For the outing, Akshay was seen in a black shirt and grey pants.

Farhan talks about importance of voting
Farhan Akhtar said, “I urge all people to come out and vote. It’s very important. It is our responsibility as a citizen of this city, state and country to be involved in its narrative…I hear that people complain about Mumbai and how it should be but when asked if they voted, they will say, ‘No, I didn’t.’ Then don’t complain. This is the one chance that you have to contribute as a citizen. So it is your responsibility.”

When asked about the one change he wants in the film industry, Farhan added, “I feel the important thing right now for me is that the number of our screens should be increased. We are very very under screened. As an industry my appeal would be that we work towards, with the support of the govt, to create more screens where people can consume content.”

Rajkummar, Gautami cast votes
Rajkummar Rao also cast his vote early morning. After that he told the reporters, “It is very important (to vote). Everyone, please step out and vote. This is the voting day, it is very important.” He was seen in beige T-shirt and black pants.

Actor Gautami Kapoor, who also cast his vote, said, “I feel great. I think casting a vote is amazing. You feel liberated and I think it is very important for every citizen to vote because every vote makes a huge difference. So, please vote…It’s very important, we can change the country.”

About Maharashtra elections
Voting began at 7 am for the single-phase Maharashtra assembly elections. It will conclude at 6 pm. Polling is taking place across 288 assembly constituencies. Security has been heightened in Mumbai. Elaborate security arrangements have been made to ensure the smooth conduct of the polls. A total of 4,136 candidates are contesting the elections, including 2,086 independents.

The BJP is contesting 149 seats, Shiv Sena 81, and the NCP 59. The Congress has fielded 101 candidates, Shiv Sena (UBT) 95, and NCP (Sharad Pawar faction) 86. The BSP is contesting 237 seats, while other smaller parties are also in the fray. The state has approximately 9.7 crore registered voters.