Bollywood stars cast vote, urge people to take to polls

Bollywood starts and celebrities added a dash of glamour to the elections on Thursday as they took to polling booths in Mumbai.

Renowned actors from the Bollywood urged people to cast votes on the second biggest day of polling.

Actor Amitabh Bachchan, his wife and veteran actress Jaya Bachchan could be seen arriving at a polling station in Mumbai. Followed by their son, Abhishek Bachchan and his wife, actress Aishwarya Rai Bachchan,.

Bollywood actor Ranbir Kapoor turned up to cast his vote accompanied by his father, veteran actor Rishi Kapoor.

Ranbir Kapoor said he hoped the elections would see a higher turnout from young voters.

"It would be unfortunate if young people do not vote, I hope this changes," he told journalists, after casting his vote. "It appeared to me that a lot of young people would turn up this time and vote, because you could hear a lot of voices (speaking up). You could hear a lot of people speaking their mind."

Actress Preity Zinta said women played an important role in the elections.

"49 percent of India's vote belongs to women, and women voting is very important," she said.

Actor Shah Rukh Khan reportedly shunned an awards ceremony to cast his vote. Walking out of the polling station the celebrity highlighted why democracy was important for the people of India.

"Election and democracy is like a fire and you feed the fire if it is in front of you. If you have to turn your back to it your behind will catch fire and then you will be sitting on your blisters and have no right to complain for the next five years. If there is fire in front of you, you need to take care of it in a good way...douse it out, look after it, look after yourself and I think election and democracy are like that. Everyone should come out and vote," said Khan.

Some Bollywood celebrities tweeted their disappointment over missing the opportunity to vote, with many attending the International Indian Film Academy Awards (IIFA), which began in Tampa Bay, Florida on April 23.

Several members of influential film and television industry have helped inject glamour into the general election by standing as candidates or by canvassing for friends or family members who are contesting in the polls.

Celebrities Aamir Khan and Amitabh Bachchan have been involved in a media campaign aimed at educating the public about the benefits of elections and the power of their vote.