RCB fan drives a nimbu-mirchi car
On June 3, as RCB prepared to battle history and heartbreak, our man chose a different strategy. He didn’t study team stats or bowling lineups. He turned to grandma’s tried-and-tested idea for disaster prevention: the mighty nimbu-mirchi.
In Hindu tradition, a string of lemons and chillies is believed to ward off the evil eye…a sort of spiritual antivirus. So naturally, this fan went full version 2.0 and wrapped his entire car in the stuff.
And for RCB, misfortune did take a detour. After 18 long years, RCB finally lifted the IPL trophy.
But, just to be clear, The Telegraph Online is not saying it was the car. We’re just saying the car was there.
Spotted cruising through Bengaluru, the lemon-and-chilli-mobile was plastered with RCB flags and a handwritten note on the hood: “Anti-Nazar Squad.” Social media did what it does best—laughed, shared and somewhere deep down… quietly hoped it would work.
“Even superstition fuels hope for victory,” commented one user. “Don’t want to take any risk,” said another. A third chimed in, “Chap will donate it to a roadside lemonade stall after the win.”
In a league filled with analytics and matchups, here was a man who believed in old-school voodoo.
Paneer Tikka or Pistol?
On most days, Kumar looked like any other food delivery agent. Helmet on, delivery bag on his back, zipping past potholes with extreme confidence.
But this time around, he wasn’t delivering momos or masala dosa. He was carrying guns.
When Uttar Pradesh police stopped him near Muzaffarnagar’s Jamalpur canal culvert, they were in for a shock. “During the search operation, 10 country-made pistols of .315 bore, several cartridges and a motorcycle were recovered from his possession,” said Muzaffarnagar SSP Sanjay Kumar Verma.
Picture this: a 23-year-old from Meerut, riding through western UP with a delivery bag stuffed not with dal makhani, but desi kattas.
“Kumar told us that he works as a delivery boy in Karnal for a famous food delivery platform. But we found that he has a criminal history spanning five years. Action is being taken against him under the Arms Act, and steps are underway to send him to jail,” Verma added.
Police say he used the uniform to blend in while supplying illegal arms across Haryana, Delhi, Punjab and UP.
The trap was set after a tip-off. “Acting on information that an illegal arms supplier had been seen in Uttar Pradesh's Muzaffarnagar, local police launched a search operation near the Jamalpur canal culvert. Seeing him attempting to ride past in a hurry, the police stopped and arrested him.”
This wasn’t a one-man show. “Kumar is being interrogated further and search is on to find the suppliers from whom the man bought these weapons and those to whom he supplied them,” Verma said.
Kumar wasn’t shy in sharing names either. According to police, during questioning, he revealed details about six others in the racket.
Authorities have declared six associates of the accused ‘wanted’ and are actively working to track and apprehend them.
‘Bite now, pay never’: Drunk man bites pakora seller’s private parts
A pakora payment dispute turned jaw-droppingly bizarre in Uttar Pradesh when a man allegedly bit and slashed a vendor’s genitals after being asked to clear his bill.
On the evening of May 30, a local sweet shop owner asked a customer to pay for his food.
But what he got in return was not cash, but carnage.
The alleged attacker – Mr Hungry – reportedly bit the shopkeeper’s private parts and followed it up with a blade attack.
Locals say the argument started over a plate of pakoras, but escalated faster than one can imagine.
“He came for snacks, not a vasectomy,” one stunned onlooker said, shaking his head.
The shop owner was rushed to the hospital, bleeding and in critical condition, while the accused fled the scene—though not for long.
A cop later confirmed that Mr Hungry was arrested on June 1 after an FIR was filed by the victim’s mother.
Police have booked the assailant under charges of voluntarily causing hurt, intentional insult and criminal intimidation—though many feel the chargesheet could’ve used a section titled “unprecedented lunacy”.
Locals are still in shock. “We’ve seen fights over tea, over chairs, even over cricket. But pakoras and privates? This is a first,” said a vendor nearby, who is reportedly now offering contactless delivery only.
Marathi names for Penguins?
When Mumbai’s Byculla Zoo introduced three penguin chicks named Noddy, Tom, and Pingu, nobody expected a feather to be ruffled.
But it didn’t take long before BJP leaders were quick with an opinion, declaring that penguins born in Maharashtra must have Marathi names only.
The zoo’s scientific decision to stick with international names ignited a classic identity-politics tussle. BJP’s Nitin Bankar pitched the argument that since Marathi has just gained classical language status, its charm should extend even to waddling chicks. After all, these are bhumiputra penguins, born on native soil.
Armed with letters to the BMC and threats of “strong agitation,” political supporters staged a protest outside the zoo.
They demanded Marathi labels for the chicks, arguing this isn’t just not about birds, but about boosting Marathi pride.
Critics called it identity overload, with some pointing out that the pups can’t even pronounce their names yet.
There is no official word yet from the zoo administration. But Mumbai’s penguins have found themselves at the centre of a linguistic tug-of-war, where every name carries the weight of cultural identity.
Policeman lifted like IPL title
Seems like Bengaluru wasn’t safe for anyone after RCB’s IPL title victory. Even an on-duty cop got lifted by an army of ecstatic fans who, for predictable reasons, didn’t know where to draw the line.
In one viral video posted by an X handle, an overenthusiastic fan literally lifted a cop who was responsible for maintaining public decorum. Armed with a lathi to disperse the crowd, the cop didn’t expect what awaited him.
The euphoria of the fans knew no bounds as the 18-year wait for the trophy finally ended on June 3.