Author: Dale Bhagwagar Media Group

Da Makeup Lab expands workspace with additional studio

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Da Makeup Lab (DML), India’s number one makeup and prosthetic design studio, is in an expansion mode. Located in the posh Versova locality of Mumbai, it has fast emerged as the leading outfit for makeup and prosthetic requirements in the entertainment industry.

The premier state-of-the-art studio has opened a new workspace to incorporate more projects. Apart from its main facility, a workforce of around 25 skilled workers have begun lending their talent at the new facility in Versova itself, to create some of the amazing looks produced by the lab.

The rising

Led by makeup and prosthetic character designer Preetisheel Singh D’souza along with her work and life partner Mark D’souza, DML has curated looks for some of the biggest movies in Bollywood.

It’s profile includes names such as Bajirao Mastani, Padmaavat, 102 Not Out, Housefull 4, Mom, Bala, Chhichhore, Bunty Aur Babli 2, the Southern megahit Master and the recent blockbuster Pushpa: The Rise. The lab has also curated looks for various advertisements featuring names such as Madhuri Dixit, Akshay Kumar and Ranbir Kapoor.

Creative genius

Preetisheel Singh D’souza has won the ‘National Film Award for Best Makeup’ for the pre-Mughal historical epic Nanak Shah Fakir. She has been featured by international media among the top 5 makeup and prosthetic designers in the world, along with Hollywood stalwarts such as Kazu Hiro, Christian Tinsley, Jordu Schell and Neill Gorton.

Her creative genius in the field has worked like a Midas Touch for many a movies, some of them emerging as the biggest box-office blockbusters of recent times.

Force behind the workforce

The company’s co-director Mark D’souza has a degree in Design Studies from the prestigious Griffith University in Australia. Earlier, he dabbled in VFX and animation. While his wife Preetisheel handles the talent and artistic departments of the studio, he handles the business and is the backbone of the company.

Mark’s guidance and expertise has helped DML witness tremendous growth in clients and has led the transformation from its initial days, to the full-fledged state-of-the-art makeup and prosthetics company today.

The future is here

The coming year will also see Da Makeup Lab launching a school for select students of the art. And as if all this isn’t enough, DML has various new projects lined up for release in the coming months. The firm has handled the makeup and prosthetics for top artistes in upcoming films like Gangubai Kathiawadi, Bachchhan Paandey, Ram Setu, OMG 2 and more.

Mrs India Namrata Tolia Shah open to Bollywood

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A complete talent package rolled in one!

When a beauty pageant title holder enters Bollywood, the hype and expectations are tremendous. But that hasn’t stopped Aishwarya Rai, Sushmita Sen, Priyanka Chopra, Lara Dutta, Neha Dhupia or Manushi Chillar from entering the entertainment industry. So why should it stop Namrata!

Namrata Tolia Shah is the latest newbie to look towards Bollywood. A few weeks ago, the 5.6 inch tall lady won the Mrs India 2021 beauty pageant organized by Skywalk Productions and managed to impress the judges so much that they liberally praised her for her charisma, character, confidence, beauty, wit, wisdom, grace and poise. It was as if she was a complete talent package rolled in one!

A management professional, a business administration research scholar and a vivid international traveller, Namrata loves dancing, acting and even adventure sports. The smart and cheerful gal is also quite vocal about women empowerment and strongly believes in social causes and humanitarian service.

Namrata is from Mumbai and after the Mrs India win, inspite of so many people asking her if she would get into acting, she seemed to be taking her time. “Bollywood would be time-consuming and will take a lot of focus and devotion, but I think I am open to giving it a shot,” she admits with a smile.

It’s been quite a journey for Namrata already. “It wouldn’t have been possible without my mother who has been my constant pillar of encouragement and support,” quips the Mrs India. She credits her mother Dr. Aarti Tolia not only for standing by her, but for being her guide and biggest critic too.

Right now, Namrata is keeping herself busy with a lot of appearances coming her way after the Mrs India win. Sometime ago, she was felicitated by the Goregaon Sports Club in Mumbai, as she inaugurated their cricket ‘Twenty-20 Season 1’. More recently, she was the chief guest and main judge at Incredible NAARI program specially organized in honour of her Mrs India win by the High Commission of India in Tanzania.

Since Namrata has optimistic personality, she takes life head on and in a very positive way. “I don’t know where my life will ultimately take me, but I aim to achieve the world!,” she remarks. Attagirl! That’s the right attitude!

SS Ballet Academy’s Pratyusha Chhajer lists 4 amazing benefits of dance

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Anybody can dance… BUT a perfect integration of music, movement and spatial awareness is required to be a professional dancer. That is what good training imparts. So what are the benefits of the training? Pratyusha Chhajer, founder-director of SS Ballet Academy in Ahmedabad, Gujarat, talks about some of the amazing benefits of dance.

Pratyusha Chhajer, founder-director of SS Ballet Academy

1) Neuroplasticity or brain plasticity

There is a technical and physics definition to Neuroplasticity. The term refers to the brain’s ability to change and adapt as a result of experience. The process of Neuroplasticity when we dance, can be simply defined as leading to subtle changes in the brain, which take place when the body links the memories of previous actions and movements with our dance moves. As the body dances, the brain adapts in response to the experiences. This not only increases plasticity, but helps our body synchronize our dance steps to the music. In fact, all this happens so subtly that one can even say it happens subconsciously. And it leads to the dancer getting better and better with his/her moves.

2) Dedication and discipline

Professional dancing takes a lot of will power and determination to excel. Thus one has to develop dedication to it on a long-term basis. And whatever one is dedicated to do, leads to a set regular pattern of discipline. Thus, dance can actually have people improving their focus in general, while improving their dedication and learning to be more disciplined, not only with dance, but also in the other aspects of life.

3) Improved gait and posture

Of course, it’s no rocket science that regular exercise, stretching and bodily movements can improve one’s gait and posture. But what dance actually does is, that it takes this one step further. Since dance also stimulates your brain and gives that feel-good feeling, it has the potential to activate all the cells in your body and make the body actually feel good and happy about its new improved gait and posture. It makes people more comfortable and confident about the way they look and stand. Ever thought about that?

4) Sense of inclusivity, togetherness and team spirit

At dance schools, like at our SS Ballet Academy, students get a chance to not only learn the right methods and tactics in ballet dancing, but also get to interact with other students and learn to harmonize and socially interact with cooperation. This brings in a strong sense of inclusivity, togetherness and team spirit, along with learning the art form. These little traits which we normally tend to overlook, go a long way in improving the way people interact and socialize. The sense of inclusivity in society also gives an edge to one’s personality and character.

ABOUT SS BALLET ACADEMY

Shonaya Chhajer of SS Ballet Academy

For the record, SS Ballet Academy was launched by its founder-director Pratyusha Chhajer four years ago to train and develop professional dancing. Named after Pratyusha’s children Samyan and Shonaya, SSBA follows the Vaganova curriculum method of ballet. It is a style of ballet training created by Russian ballerina Agrippina Vaganova, who became a highly renowned ballet teacher and has authored the book Basic Principles of Classical Ballet. This curriculum method is marked by a fusion of the classical French style (specifically elements from the romantic era), with the athleticism of the Italian method, combined with the soulful passion of Imperial Russian Ballet.

SS Ballet Academy raises bar for ballet dancers with CID certification

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The SS Ballet Academy (SSBA) in Ahmedabad, Gujarat has just revealed some interesting secrets that their students can benefit from. SSBA is a member of the internationally prestigious Conseil International de la Danse (CID) certification, which is an official partner of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (popularly known as UNESCO).

SSBA students are now privileged to benefit from a whole lot of advantages. They can work on dance activities and events in India and have joint projects with students of other countries. They can take part in CID programmes as well as in meetings and activities of CID members.

In fact, CID encourages and forwards news for interaction with other CID members to their colleagues and students for more growth opportunities for their members.

Pratyusha Chhajer of SS Ballet Academy

SSBA students can even contact CID members before travelling to another country. They can seek a briefing and get assistance about dance programmes ahead of their journey to those countries. This is possible as CID has a vast network of professionals and operates like one big family.

But probably the most important benefit the students of SS Ballet Academy get from the CID certification is that CID validates the SSBA dance classes and provides a universal stamp of legitimacy to the academy’s students.

For the record, SS Ballet Academy was launched by its founder-director Pratyusha Chhajer four years ago to train and develop professional dancing. Named after Pratyusha’s children Samyan and Shonaya, SSBA follows the Vaganova curriculum method of ballet. It is a style of ballet training created by Russian ballerina Agrippina Vaganova, who became a highly renowned ballet teacher and has authored the book Basic Principles of Classical Ballet.

This curriculum method is marked by a fusion of the classical French style (specifically elements from the romantic era), with the athleticism of the Italian method, combined with the soulful passion of Imperial Russian Ballet.

Dubai Expo, an exponential game changer, says Pratyusha Chhajer of SS Ballet Academy

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Pratyusha Chhajer, director of SS Ballet Academy in Ahmedabad, Gujarat, is all praise for the Dubai Expo that is going on from a few months and has wooed lakhs of worldwide visitors.

Pratyusha Chhajer, director, SS Ballet Academy

Having visited the ‘Expo 2020 Dubai’, Pratuysha commented that “it is one of the most lavish and well-planned events” she has been to. “Apart from being beautifully encapsulating in content, the Expo is so systematic in its technical brilliance that one wonders how humans have actually managed to achieve such kind of perfection in organising mega events like these,” she exclaims about the Expo being attended by people all over the world.

To add to this, the mesmerised director of the ballet academy points out how other aspects of this business extravaganza impressed her. “The Covid protocols were very well-maintained and the international cuisine enhanced the pleasure of making this outing.”

Facade of Indian pavilion in Expo 2020 Dubai. (Courtesy – Expo 2020 official website.)

“Overall, the combinative impact on promoting art and culture along with commerce, not only makes this Expo an enriching experience promoting tourism, but an exponential game changer from a business interaction and growth perspective,” Pratyusha sums up.

It can be noted here that the India Pavilion at ‘Expo 2020 Dubai’ has become one of the most popular enclosures generating great footfalls, as it showcases our country’s business potential as well as cultural and geographic diversity.

Since the inauguration, it has celebrated major festivals like Navratri, Dussehra and Diwali along with cultural events to mark them. Apart from the India Pavilion, Pratyusha says, she particularly liked the enclosures of countries including Russia, Australia, Ireland and Belgium.

Multinational apparel marketplace Zaffori to launch official website

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Multinational apparel marketplace Zaffori is set to unveil its official website www.zaffori.com.  An extension of the brand, the site will mark the next step on Zaffori’s journey of defining itself.

Headquartered in New York, the online marketplace will connect distinctive global exclusive designers with customers seeking to shop through a unique product range. Zaffori will specifically cater to the individual designer’s target audience, through detailed market research, marketing and brand awareness schemes.

Offering apparel for both men and women in a variety of categories, the website will focus on the ease of doing business. “The site is made to be user friendly for the customer and for the designer,” informs Gauri Shah, president, Zaffori Ventures. “It is meant to feel like an experience for the customer. It’s supposed to feel classy, exclusive, luxurious, glamorous, and at the same time, exhibit simplicity,” she adds.

The site’s colors are going to be minimal as the brand will stick to black and white mostly. The aim is to have a clean and sharp look, furthermore emphasizing simplicity.

Ordering from Zaffori is made to be simple and efficient for the customer. A simple three step process will make it very convenient to purchase made-to-order/made-to-measure products from the site. Firstly, the customer will select the design/product they want. Then, input their measurements in a form that will pop up when one clicks on ‘Add to cart’. Once the measurements are added on the site, one can simply proceed to checkout and pay, and the order would be complete. It’s as simple as that.

To further aid customers, there will be an in-depth measurement video showcasing how to take measurements, in case customers need assistance. The brand is being partnered with UPS, allowing it to make its shipping process much more efficient for both the designer and customer. In addition, customers will also be able to easily track the production progress of their garments and be given real-time updates.

Allu Arjun praises Da Makeup Lab for the success of his look in Pushpa

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Even as Pushpa: The Rise – Part 1 continues to set records at the box-office, after emerging the biggest blockbuster in recent times, South style icon Allu Arjun has praised its makeup and prosthetic character designer Preetisheel Singh D’souza and her team at Da Makeup Lab for his stunning look in the film.

Speaking at an event, the superstar who plays the forceful character of Pushpa Raj in the film said that the team of Da Makeup Lab were the “main reason” for the success of his look in the film.

Humbled by Allu Arjun’s gesture Preetisheel shared the clip of Allu Arjun and wrote, “When an actor, so versatile like @alluarjunonline appreciates your work… it only encourages you to do better. Thank you so much for such kind words. It means a ton to the whole team!”

The lab is also behind the makeovers of Rashmika Mandanna and Fahadh Faasil in the film, with their looks too receiving tremendous praise from critics and fans alike.

In fact, Da Makeup Lab, at Versova, Mumbai, has emerged as the number one outfit for makeup and prosthetic requirements in the entertainment industry. It has been the undisputed leader for many years. The studio has been responsible for handling challenging look transformations for many movies such as Padmaavat, Bajirao Mastani, 102 Not Out, Housefull 4, Mom, Bala, Chhichhore, Bunty Aur Babli 2 and another Southern megahit Master.

Their forthcoming films include very interesting names such as Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s Gangubai Kathiwadi and Akshay Kumar starrers like Bachchan Pandey, OMG 2 and Ram Setu.

Discipline from ballet promotes overall grooming, notes Pratyusha Chhajer

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Dance not only helps in keeping the body active but is also a great way to express emotions, release stress and develop discipline in life. It lets us explore our wild imaginations, gives us hope and joy. And in these unprecedented times, these are the things that we need more than anything, believes Pratyusha Chhajer, the director of SS Ballet Academy (SSBA).

Starting out in Indore, Madhya Pradesh and shifting headquarters to Ahmedabad, Gujarat, the academy has been giving ballet enthusiasts a new lease of life during the pandemic.

Taking a closer look at the problem, Pratyusha points out that the highly contagious Coronavirus profoundly changed our lives – it caused huge disruption in our routines and distorted the sense of time. Students became over-dependent on gadgets and their involvement in physical activity was reduced to zero, all thanks to the COVID-induced lockdown. Looking at the pile of problems, it’s high time that people incorporate an activity in their routines that could retain the balance in their lives.

“And there is nothing better than ballet dance,” opines Pratyusha, “as ballet dancing helps in building traits like confidence, teamwork and discipline, thereby promoting overall grooming.”

A mother of two, Pratyusha assures that one hour of ballet dance practice will bring positive behavioural changes. Not just that, the ballet dance postures physically strengthens the person and soothing music calms the mind. “My own daughter started ballet dancing during the first lockdown and the progress in her dancing skills, as well as her personality, has been incredible,” she points out.

In these hard times, Pratyusha wants parents, teachers and guardians to step up and encourage children to enroll in these classes. “It’s good to let your child follow their heart, but sometimes as elders, it’s essential to make them do things that will be good for them in the long run.”

True. Considering how their personal, as well as academic lives have gone haywire, elders should encourage children to take up activities like ballet dancing that would help in their overall grooming while instilling discipline in them. “When gadgets have become our friends and we are dependent on them to this extent, why not make good use of them,” says Pratyusha as SSBA has begun conducting online ballet classes on Zoom and Google Classroom.

Pratyusha opened the SS Ballet Academy three years ago to train and develop professional dancers. Though the pandemic posed several challenges, she turned them into an opportunity, not just for herself, but for many others.

“Opportunities do not come gift-wrapped. You need to step out of your comfort zone and take risks,” she quips and adds, “We did the same by switching to online classes and the results were fabulous. There were so many people who wanted to make good use of their time at home and polish their creative side.”

Namrata Tolia Shah wins Mrs India 2021 beauty pageant

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Don’t be surprised if Bollywood gets a new stunning face soon. It was a proud moment for Namrata Tolia Shah when she grabbed the spotlight and won the crown at the Mrs India 2021 beauty pageant, organised by Skywalk Productions recently.

An optimistic bubbly person and a management professional, the 5.6 inch tall beauty impressed the judges and the audience alike, to win the title by her witty answers in her question-answer round. Namrata also turned out to be the only Mumbaikar to reach the final round of the pageant.

Impressing the judges in the introduction round with her confidence and grace, she was praised in the audition round for her beauty and wisdom. Namrata also presented a self-choreographed dance of the popular Hindi song, “O Saki Saki” in the talent round and received praises for her portrayal.

And here’s a bit of trivia. A fellow contestant in her late 40s was so mesmerised by Namrata that she walked up to her during rehearsals and started singing a Hindi movie song praising her beauty. During the training sessions this contestant had admitted that she could not take her eyes off Namrata. She said, “I have never sang a song for anybody, not even for my husband. But here, I dedicate a song to your beauty.” And then, she sang the popular song, “Tere chehre se nazar nahin hatati.”

At the Mrs India pageant, Namrata also topped the fitness session in the trial tenure, where all the contestants were supposed to perform non-stop exercises and Zumba.

“The pageant’s preparation was no cakewalk,” says the winner. “I had to take care and manage my weight and food habits, while concentrating on fitness to skin to hair routines. Simultaneously, I needed to be aware of all the global news and updates and also devote time to my family. But ultimately, the multi-tasking was worth it all,” she sighs.

After her Mrs India win, fellow contestants came together to congratulate her. Many claimed they had guessed from the start that Namrata would emerge the winner because of her charisma, character, grace and poise.

Sometime ago, the new Mrs India was felicitated by the Goregaon Sports Club with a bouquet and trophy, while she opened their cricket ‘Twenty-20 Season 1’. At the event, Namrata spoke eloquently about women empowerment and noted how she strongly believes in social causes and humanitarian service.

Pushpa’s looks leave fans spellbound as the film breaks box-office records!!

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“This level of appreciation is a real blessing,” says makeover specialist Preetisheel

Telugu superstar Allu Arjun’s highly-anticipated action-thriller Pushpa: The Rise created a storm at the box-office soon after its nationwide release in various languages. The Part 1 of the movie broke all the records to become India’s biggest grosser of 2021, with a worldwide collection of Rs 173 crores on the first weekend.

Fans who watched the movie flooded social media with appreciation about Allu Arjun, Rashmika Mandanna and Fahadh Faasil’s performances, their unique looks and makeovers. Some called it a masterpiece for the direction, while others appreciated the actors’ looks and transformation that makes the characters look more realistic and believable.

The talent behind all the makeovers (from Allu Arjun’s to Rashmika Mandanna and Fahadh Faasil’s), Preetisheel Singh D’souza, finds herself a little short of words to express her happiness. The makeup and prosthetic character designer remarks, “It’s always a pleasure to hear good things about your work, but this level of appreciation is a real blessing.”

Allu Arjun, who plays a truck driver involved in red sandalwood smuggling, dropped his ‘style icon’ image and donned a rustic look – ruffled hair, tanned skin, rugged beard and sharp-piercing eyes. “He patiently sat on the chair for hours for the transformation and gave all the liberty to experiment,” informs Preetisheel. The hard work indeed paid off as fans are going gaga over it.

She adds, “It was a challenge to create the looks. Whether it was the dramatic avatar of Allu Arjun, the deglamorized version of Rashmika Mandanna, or the bald look of Fahadh Faasil, a lot of work went into making them look the way they do in the film. I am happy that people are finding these drastic transformations interesting.”

But that’s not the only reason for Preetisheel to be happy. This has been a rocking year for her. Besides the success of Pushpa: The Rise, another Southern film Master, where she worked on Thalapathy Vijay, emerged a mega-hit at the box-office. Her film Chichhore where she had designed the old and new looks for all the cast including Sushant Singh Rajput, won the National Award in the Best Film category. She earned a lot of critical acclaim for the various makeovers in Bunty Aur Babli 2. Apart from that her character designs for Divya Agarwal in the ALT Balaji web series Cartel won tremendous praise.

Moreover, her studio Da Makeup Lab in the posh Versova locality of Mumbai, which she runs with her work and life partner Mark D’souza, has emerged as the number one outfit for makeup and prosthetic requirements in the entertainment industry.

What’s more! 2022 looks as promising as 2021. Preetisheel is gearing up for the release of Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s Gangubai Kathiwadi and Akshay Kumar starrers like Bachchan Pandey, OMG 2 and Ram Setu next.

Last but not the least, Chhichhore will be one of the first international films to hit Chinese theatres in 2022. With its release date set for January 7, the first Friday of the new year, some are even talking about it as a sign of thawing of ties between China and India in the coming year.

Zaffori offers free storage in New York for designers worldwide

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Online marketplace Zaffori is offering free storage for designers worldwide at its fulfillment center in New York. Since NYC has great connectivity, it will reduce shipping time for customer orders and allow for a more efficient flow compared to a drop-shipping model.

Starting next month, designers affiliated with Zaffori can avail complimentary fulfillment services to store their inventory, informs the company. There is no fulfillment center fee or membership fee. At the Zaffori Fulfillment Center, its team will place the product into premium packaging and ship anywhere across the globe at the company’s cost.

Zaffori prioritizes sustainability in its business model. With the platform being predominantly a made-to-order / made-to-measure one, it brings down the investment cost for designers and also reduces wastage. A designer only begins production once an order has been placed, this reduces unnecessary storage and investment.

Born from the idea that talented international designers deserve a larger market, the Zaffori brand is introducing the bespoke designer wear concept, offering customized premium apparel and accessories.

The platform aims to unite global exclusive emerging designers and brands to market garments to customers worldwide, who desire authentic and deluxe designer wear. Headquartered in New York, Zaffori will connect distinctive global emerging and independent brands with those seeking to shop through a unique product range.

Preetisheel’s character designs thrill as Pushpa trailer roars

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The trailer of Allu Arjun’s much-awaited action thriller Pushpa: The Rise – Part 1 was released recently, leaving netizens awestruck. From action-packed sequences, to an engaging story around red sandalwood smuggling; everything in the trailer promises an exciting watch for movie buffs.

Amid all the buzz, one thing which caught everyone’s attention was the look transformations of the actors. Whether it’s the intense and vintage look of Arjun, who plays a truck driver involved in smuggling, the feisty damsel Rashmika Mandanna, or the bald getup of Fahadh Faasil, who plays the prime antagonist donning a moustache — it all seems to be very much convincing.

The makeover specialist behind all these transformations, Preetisheel Singh D’souza is filled with gratitude for all the love her work is receiving. “It’s always a pleasure to hear appreciating words about your work, more so, when it comes from fans of a superstar like Allu Arjun, who always have very high expectations,” she said. “Each look has a story to tell and we feel fortunate to be a part of this process of designing interesting characters,” Preetisheel added.

A few days ago, the makeup and prosthetic character designer also took to Instagram to share Pushpa’s poster with a caption that read, “A character’s journey starts when his look for the film is locked! In the movie-making business, both the hero and the villain compliment each other, and none is effective without the other. Our aim is to do justice to both, bringing out their good, bad and ugly sides, with elan. Sharing this poster of #Pushpa, wherein we had the pleasure of creating these two unique characters!”

Helmed by director Sukumar and produced by Mythri Movie Makers, the film will release on December 17.

For the record, Preetisheel is a National Award recipient and has handled the makeup and prosthetics for blockbusters like Bajirao Mastani, Padmaavat, Housefull 4, Haider, Rangoon, Mom, 102 Not Out, Thackeray, Bala and Chhichhore. She recently made headlines for the transformative looks of all the lead characters in Bunty Aur Babli 2, as well as the looks of Divya Agarwal in the web series Cartel.

Her studio Da Makeup Lab, which she runs with her partner-husband Mark D’souza, has emerged as the number one outfit for makeup and prosthetic requirements in the entertainment industry.

Preetisheel is now gearing up for the release of Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s Gangubai Kathiwadi and Akshay Kumar starrers like Bachchan Pandey, OMG 2 and Ram Setu.