Though he initially aspired to be a cricketer, Priyadarshan quit cricket to focus on films after an eye injury. The Padma Shri- and National Award-winning filmmaker has delivered countless hits such as Virasat, Kanchivaram, Marakkar, and Hera Pheri. Many of his Malayalam films featured superstar Mohanlal. He has also penned cricket columns.
Though renowned playback singer Hariharan is known for his soft ghazals, he rocked the 1990s with the musical duo Colonial Cousins, with fellow singer Lesle Lewis. The two-time National Award winner also has a Padma Shri to his credit. He is also known for his long-term collaboration with A.R Rahman.
Shobana is an Indian Bharatanatyam dancer and film actress. Widely regarded as one of the best Bharatanatyam dancers, Shobana was honored with the Padma Shri, India's fourth-highest civilian award, in 2006. She is also renowned for her acting skills, winning two National Film Awards for Best Actress for her performances in Manichitrathazhu (1993) and Mitr, My Friend (2001).
Raftaar is an Indian rapper, TV personality, lyricist, dancer, and music composer. The recipient of a Brit Asia TV Music Award, Raftaar has contributed immensely to the soundtracks of several popular Bollywood films like Bullet Raja, Heropanti, and Dangal. He has also served as a judge on popular TV shows like Roadies, Dance India Dance, and MTV Hustle.
Along with her sisters Lalitha and Ragini, Padmini was part of the Travancore sisters of the 1940s’ South Indian film industry. A trained Bharatanatyam dancer, she later won a Filmfare award for the Hindi movie Kajal and a Filmfare nomination for Jis Desh Mein Ganga Behti Hai.
Known as the father of modern legal education, N. R. Madhava Menon established the National Law Universities and was the first director of the NLSIU. The Padma Shri- and Padma Bhushan-winning lawyer formed the 5-year Indian LLB program and had also penned numerous books on law.
In spite of being the youngest Grandmaster from his home state Kerala in India, chess prodigy S. L. Narayanan had to resort to the crowdfunding platform Milaap to fund his chess career. He had begun to be noticed since his Under-12 Commonwealth Chess Championship win and later won many national and international titles.