Bollywood actress and BJP nominee from the Mandi Lok Sabha seat in Himachal Pradesh, Kangana Ranaut, appealed to voters on Friday to participate in the festival of democracy, exercise their right to vote, and “make a difference in our country’s future”.

“Today marks the first phase of voting — let’s show up in numbers and cast our votes for a brighter India,” she wrote on X, adding “every vote matters!”

In a unique electoral showdown in the Mandi constituency, the battleground shifts between “royalty” and “stardom”, as Congress legislator Vikramaditya Singh, the scion of the erstwhile royal family, challenges Bollywood’s queen, Kangana Ranaut.

Amid the clash of heritage and stardom, the sprawling constituency, one of the toughest and covering almost two-thirds of the state, braces for a riveting electoral spectacle