Ekta Kapoor welcomes baby boy via surrogacy
Mumbai, Jan 31: Producer Ekta Kapoor has become a mother to a baby boy via surrogacy.
The baby boy was born on January 27 and has been named Ravie, after her father Jeetendra's real name.
"By God's grace, I have seen many successes in my life, but nothing beats the feeling of this beautiful soul being added in my world. I cannot even begin to express how happy my baby's birth has made me," she wrote on Instagram.
The producer said she had been trying for a baby for the past seven years.
"Everything in life doesn't go the way you want it to but there are always solutions to those hiccups. I found mine and today, I feel immensely blessed to become a parent," Ekta said.
"It is an emotional moment for me and my family and I can't wait to begin this new journey of being a mother to my little bundle of joy, Ravie Kapoor," she added.
Ekta's brother Tusshar Kapoor had also opted for surrogacy in 2016 for his son Laksshya.
"Ekta is a family-oriented person and has been like a mother to my son Laksshya. This marks the beginning of a new phase in her life, an exciting time of completeness and fulfilment," Tusshar told PTI.
Filmmaker Karan Johar, who became a parent to a son and daughter via surrogacy in 2017, congratulated Kapoor on the new chapter in her life.
"To my soul connect mate in so many different ways! I love you and and am so so happy for you !! Yash and Roohi send love to their aunt and their new best friend Ravie!!!!," he wrote on Twitter.
Filmmakers Hansal Mehta and Ashwiny Iyer Tiwary also congratulated the producer on motherhood.
"Many congratulations and lots of love dearest @ektaravikapoor. Welcome to parenthood and joy Mehta wrote.
"You are going to be awesome as a parent @ektaravikapoor Loads of love and hugs to you dearest mommy', welcome to the club," added Tiwary.
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Bengaluru goes to poll amid heat wave-like situation
Bengaluru (PTI): Voters across four constituencies in Bengaluru, which were among the 14 Lok Sabha seats that went to polls in Karnataka, came out to vote in heat wave-like conditions on Friday.
Bengaluru North, Bengaluru Central, Bengaluru Rural and Bengaluru South are among the 14 constituencies in the state that voted in the first phase today.
“Although Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) has not included Bengaluru in the list of heat wave affected areas, the city does satisfy one of the heat wave conditions – the departure from normal temperatures by at least 4.5 degrees,” said A Prasad, a scientist at IMD Bengaluru.
Bengaluru is categorised under Aw (tropical savanna, winter-dry) by the Koeppen-Geiger classification with average temperature pegged at 22 degrees Celsius. And according to Climate-data.org, the mercury in the city’s warmest month April usually never rises above 32.8 degrees Celsius.
“This April, Bengaluru’s highest temperature has surpassed the normal average almost every day,” said C S Patil, director of IMD Bengaluru.
As per IMD data, Bengaluru’s maximum temperature on the voting day will range between 36.4 and 38.4 degree Celsius.
Given that, IMD scientists said it is best that voters take precautions when they venture out.
“It is best to avoid direct exposure to sunlight between 12 noon and 3pm, when the intensity of the heat will be at its peak. Also, keep drinking water even if you are not thirsty and use an umbrella and sunglasses whenever venturing out. If one feels hot, a damp cloth to the neck will cool down the person to an extent,” said M Rajavel, a scientist at IMD.
Meanwhile, four of the districts that were issued an orange alert by the IMD – Tumkur, Mysuru, Mandya, Chitradurga, Chikkaballapura and Kolar – are also polling on April 26.
Chief Electoral Officer of Karnataka, Manoj Kumar Meena, while briefing about poll preparations had told reporters that the election commission is keeping in mind that many districts would be facing a heat wave on the polling day.
“We are prepared for heat-related medical issues like sunstroke and dehydration. All polling booths will have medical officers and ambulances too. Besides that, each booth will be equipped with a special medical kit,” Meena told reporters.
The unprecedented heat, which the IMD scientists attribute to El Nino effect apart from global warming, had also resulted in a subdued campaigning this election season, especially in the early phases.
“It was so hot that we had to avoid campaigning in the afternoons. We did it in the mornings, and then post 3pm. So yes, our campaigning did suffer because of the heat,” said M B Patil, Congress leader and state minister for large and medium industries and infrastructure development, to PTI.
