The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation removed a video featuring actor Diya Mirza from its social media accounts after criticism from BJP and Shiv Sena leaders over her appeal to Mumbai residents not to burst firecrackers during Diwali. Videos featuring other public figures continued to remain available, according to a report by Navbharat Times – Mumbai.
The BMC had published messages from Mirza, Madhuri Dixit Nene, Nishigandha Wad and cricketer Ajinkya Rahane as part of a public-awareness campaign on air and noise pollution. The campaign followed directions from the Bombay High Court, which had criticised the civic body over firecracker use in Mumbai and asked it to conduct awareness activities involving well-known personalities.
The court has restricted the bursting of firecrackers in public places and parks in Mumbai in view of rising pollution, the report said. Despite such restrictions, widespread firecracker use during Diwali has remained a recurring challenge for civic authorities. The BMC’s campaign sought to communicate the restrictions and encourage residents to avoid activities that contribute to pollution and excessive noise.
Mirza’s video called on people not to burst firecrackers. After it was posted, BJP Mumbai president Amit Satam objected to the message in a post tagging the BMC on X. Satam wrote that people did not need to learn from Mirza how Diwali should be celebrated and argued that traditions were deeply rooted in Indian culture.
Shiv Sena spokesperson Shaina NC also criticised the appeal in comments to ANI. She described Diwali as a festival of lights and said that Mumbai residents did not need to learn from others how to celebrate it. At the same time, she said that nobody was promoting pollution or asking people to burst firecrackers, according to the report.
The BMC subsequently removed Mirza’s video from its social media accounts. Videos featuring the other celebrities named in the campaign were still available when the report was published. The removal placed the civic body’s public-health messaging at the centre of a dispute over how municipal authorities should communicate restrictions that affect religious and cultural celebrations.
Union minister Ramdas Athawale also commented on the controversy. He said that the issue was not limited to one community and referred to the constitutional right of every religion to observe its festivals. He added that excessive pollution also needed to be considered, while arguing that the absence of firecrackers could reduce the significance of Diwali.
The episode follows a familiar administrative tension: civic authorities are required to enforce pollution and noise-control directions while also persuading residents to comply with them during a major festival. The BMC’s immediate public communication now includes the removal of one campaign video, while the other awareness messages reported by the source remain online.
