Stars line up to worship their idol

Akshay Kumar, Rajinikanth and Amitabh Bachchan

We're barely a month away from the consecration and inauguration ceremonies of the Ayodhya Ram Mandir in Uttar Pradesh. On January 22, the consecration ceremony will see Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi place Lord Ram's idol in the sanctum sanctorum, in the presence of priests and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath. Now, the two ceremonies are turning out to be star-studded affairs.

That's not surprising given the current dispensation's strong ties with many Hindi cinema stars. We hear Bollywood will attend the events in full force, with Amitabh Bachchan, Akshay Kumar, Ajay Devgn, Ranbir Kapoor, Alia Bhatt, Ayushmann Khurrana, Madhuri Dixit-Nene, Tiger Shroff and Anupam Kher on the guest list. Filmmakers Sanjay Leela Bhansali, Rajkumar Hirani and Rohit Shetty too are expected to grace the event.

Stalwarts from the south film industry - including Rajinikanth, Chiranjeevi and Mohanlal - as well as Prabhas and Yash will be in attendance. A source says that the idea is to bring together some of India's biggest achievers for the January 22 and January 24 ceremony. This includes industrialists Ratan Tata, Mukesh Ambani and Gautam Adani, as well as sportspersons Sachin Tendulkar and Virat Kohli. The event also aims to host representatives from 50 foreign countries, disclosed Champat Rai, general secretary of Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Trust.

The source adds, "Musicians are expected to perform at the inauguration ceremony. The final list is being curated, but those trained in Hindustani classical music are being approached. About 300 actors and filmmakers are expected to mark their presence." The ceremony is projected to attract an audience of approximately 7,000, including devotees.