As New York gears up for its mayoral election, an old video of filmmaker Mira Nair calling her son, Zohran Mamdani, “a total desi” has gone viral. The 2013 interview resurfaced amid Mamdani’s rise as a leading candidate in the race. In the clip, Nair said, “We are not firangs at all. He is very much like us.” The Monsoon Wedding director also said her son was deeply interested in politics, not films. Mamdani, a New York State Assembly member, has promised to make life easier for New Yorkers if elected mayor. (PC: NDTV)

Former Miss India and Bollywood actress Celina Jaitly has appealed for help after the Delhi High Court heard her plea about her brother, Major (Retd.) Vikrant Kumar Jaitly, allegedly detained in the UAE since September 2024. The court directed the Ministry of External Affairs to arrange communication between the family and Major Jaitly and sought a status report on India’s efforts. Calling the order “a ray of hope,” Celina shared an emotional post saying, “You fought for us, bhai.” She urged the government to ensure justice and protection for Indian veterans abroad. (PC: Economic Times)

Indian-British billionaire Gopichand (GP) Hinduja, chairman of the Hinduja Group, passed away in London at the age of 85. The news was announced by British lawmaker Rami Ranger, who called him “gracious, humble, and a guiding force.” Hinduja was known for leading one of the world’s largest family-owned conglomerates, with businesses in banking, energy, and healthcare. Tributes poured in from global leaders and industry figures, describing his death as the end of an era. GP Hinduja’s leadership and philanthropy made him one of the most respected figures in both India and the UK. (PC: X)

Entrepreneur Manish Wahie has warned that rude and entitled behaviour by some Indian travellers is harming India’s global image. “People have started judging us the moment we walk in,” said Wahie, who lives in Kazakhstan. He blamed rising aggression and sudden wealth for this trend. Sharing an example, he said a group of Indian passengers once spread a bedsheet near an aircraft’s emergency exit to gamble. “They don’t realise what kind of impression they’re creating,” he added. Wahie urged airlines to hand out short etiquette guides to travellers to help protect India’s reputation abroad. (PC: Business Today)

Two US courts have stopped the deportation of Subramanyam “Subu” Vedam, an Indian-origin man who spent 43 years in prison for a murder he did not commit. Vedam, who moved to the US as a baby, was freed in October after his conviction was overturned. But immigration officials detained him again for an old minor drug case. His lawyers say it is unfair to deport him after decades of wrongful imprisonment. The courts have paused his deportation while his appeal is reviewed. Vedam’s family hopes he will finally be allowed to live freely in the country he calls home. (PC: India Today)

Canada rejected 74% of Indian student visa applications in August 2025, more than double the 32% rejection rate from a year earlier, as part of stricter immigration controls. Indian applications plummeted from 20,900 in August 2023 to just 4,515 in August 2025. The crackdown follows fraud concerns, with Canadian authorities uncovering nearly 1,550 fraudulent study permit applications in 2023, mostly from India, and detecting over 14,000 potentially fraudulent acceptance letters in 2024. Universities like Waterloo report two-thirds decline in Indian enrollment. The measures coincide with strained India-Canada relations following former PM Trudeau's allegations about India's involvement in Hardeep Singh Nijjar's killing, which New Delhi strongly denies. (PC: Firstpost & The Indian Express)

A disturbing viral video from Canada shows an intoxicated man violently assaulting an Indian national after accusing him of "acting superior." The unprovoked attack has sparked widespread outrage across social media platforms, with users demanding strict legal action against the perpetrator. The incident has intensified concerns about rising xenophobia and racism targeting immigrants in Canada. Many commentators have highlighted the growing frequency of hate crimes and discriminatory attacks against Indian nationals and other immigrant communities. The video has drawn attention to the challenges faced by immigrants in Canada, prompting calls for stronger hate crime legislation and better protection for vulnerable communities. Authorities have not yet confirmed whether charges have been filed in this case.

A senior Indian tech lead earning nearly ₹1 crore annually was denied a US B1/B2 visa in under a minute at the New Delhi embassy after just three questions. He planned to attend Kubecon + CloudNative Con 2025 in Atlanta, crucial for his Cloud Native platform work. Despite having an 11-year stable job, an eight-month-old daughter, confirmed conference registration, hotel bookings, and international travel history to Lithuania, Maldives, and Indonesia, he received a Section 214(b) refusal slip. The officer asked about his travel purpose, previous trips, and US connections before denying the visa. Section 214(b) applies when consular officers doubt applicants will return home after visiting America. (PC: The Economic Times)

A 36-year-old Indian national, Adarsh Behera from Odisha's Jagatsinghpur district, has been kidnapped by Sudan's paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) in Al Fashir, located 1,000 kilometers from Khartoum. Behera, who moved to Sudan three years ago to work at Sukarati Plastic Factory, was abducted from the city recently captured by RSF after an 18-month siege. He is married with two sons aged eight and three. Sudan's ambassador to India, Mohammed Abdalla Ali Eltom, has pledged cooperation to secure his safe return, though described the situation as "unpredictable." The RSF, notorious for atrocities, has allegedly taken him to their stronghold in Nyala. Sudan's civil war has killed 150,000 and displaced 12 million people.

US authorities confirmed that Indian-origin driver Jashanpreet Singh was not under the influence of alcohol or drugs during a fatal crash in California that killed three people. The 21-year-old from Yuba City now faces charges of grossly negligent homicide and reckless driving. Eyewitnesses said Singh’s truck sped into stopped vehicles, causing a deadly multi-car collision. He remains in custody without bail. Officials said Singh entered the US illegally in 2022. This is the second such case involving an Indian-origin truck driver in recent months, raising concern over reckless driving incidents across the United States. (PC: India Today)