<h2>Timeless beauty Manasi Joshi Roy on Shabana Azmi</h2>
Given her impressive acting lineage, television veteran Manasi Joshi Roy naturally recognises cinematic royalty &mdash; making her pick of enduring icon Shabana Azmi entirely understandable.
<img src="http://images.mid-day.com/images/images/2026/may/Manasi-Joshi_e.jpg" alt="Manasi Joshi Roy" width="1280" height="720" /> Manasi Joshi Roy
&ldquo;Shabana ji to me is not just a &lsquo;Timeless Beauty,&rsquo; but a timeless actor as well. She has always been one of my favourite actors, and I deeply admire the way she has portrayed such a vast range of characters with honesty, intelligence, and incredible grace over the years &mdash; and continues to do so even today. There is something so powerful yet effortless about her performances that they stay with you long after the screen fades to black,&rdquo; says Manasi.
An equally pertinent insight follows: &ldquo;I truly believe that beauty is what beauty does. The many causes she has championed over the years, her courage in speaking up, and the impact she has made on society, make her even more inspiring. Shabana ji represents elegance with substance, art with conscience, and beauty with purpose.&rdquo;
<h2>The Reign of Rhea</h2>
It&rsquo;s time to redirect our lens, because the real MVP of the international red-carpet season isn&rsquo;t standing in front of the flashing cameras. She&rsquo;s the mastermind behind them. If the last few months have proven anything, it&rsquo;s that we are all just living in Rhea Kapoor&rsquo;s sartorial universe, and our global glamazons are gladly paying rent. Rhea hasn&rsquo;t just been styling celebrities &mdash; she&rsquo;s been executing a brilliant, border-defying masterclass in cultural storytelling.
<img src="http://images.mid-day.com/images/images/2026/may/Rhea-Kapoor_e.jpg" alt="Rhea Kapoor" width="1280" height="720" /> Rhea Kapoor
In April she transformed Natasha Poonawalla into a kantha-clad queen for the King&rsquo;s Trust Gala in New York and, before we could catch our breath, Ananya Birla was marched up the Met Gala steps in an unforgettable Robert Wun meets Subodh Gupta ensemble. Not content with conquering Manhattan, Rhea pivoted to Europe, wrapping Radhika Merchant in a breathtaking, liquid-silk Givenchy sari-gown at the Venice Biennale, before taking over the French Riviera to dress Alia Bhatt in dreamy custom couture at Cannes.
From the upper echelons of NYC to the historic docks of Venice, Kapoor&rsquo;s distinctive vision is setting the definitive template for modern, globally fluent Indian glamour. At this rate, her passport is bound to run out of pages before the month ends, but with her frequent flier miles hitting stratospheric heights, we doubt she&rsquo;s complaining.
<h2>When the road is a runway</h2>
Currently in love with the xiaolongbao at Steamroom, yours truly has been pounding the pavement in Bandra&rsquo;s leafy bylanes more than usual. But while I pile on dim sum-donated calories, the local swish set is busy burning theirs on Pali Hill&rsquo;s perilous slopes.
<img src="http://images.mid-day.com/images/images/2026/may/Poonam-Bhagat_e.jpg" alt="Poonam Bhagat" width="1280" height="720" /> Poonam Bhagat
Cruising past the old-money bungalows and nouveau high-rises, you&rsquo;re bound to spot society doyenne Monica Vaziralli maintaining her elegant stride, or catch a glimpse of Gauri Spratt, Aamir Khan&rsquo;s lady love, bringing her effortless Bangalore-bred grace to the asphalt. After all, this exclusive enclave counts everyone from Kriti Sanon and Mana Shetty to art patron Poonam Bhagat as residents &mdash; making a routine stroll here feel like a day at the derby.
Yet, while those beauties rarely swap their high-security gates for the street, encounters with Junaid Khan are a regular fixture. Most star kids remain sequestered behind tinted windows, but Junaid navigates the Pali Hill incline like an average Joe &mdash; minus the sprawling entourage and starry airs. What makes him stand out is his disarming candour; he actually admits he doesn&rsquo;t hate the word &lsquo;nepotism.&rsquo;
<img src="http://images.mid-day.com/images/images/2026/may/Junaid-Khan_e.jpg" alt="Junaid Khan" width="1280" height="720" /> Junaid Khan
&ldquo;I get a lot of work because I&rsquo;m Aamir Khan&rsquo;s son,&rdquo; the young actor acknowledged recently &mdash; an admission that is earning him serious brownie points in my book. In a neighbourhood built on curated illusions, his unpretentious walks and bracing honesty make Junaid an incredibly refreshing fixture on the hill. Winding slopes of all sorts are better navigated when you are grounded.
<h2>Khau Gully King</h2>
In a world of curated, kale-smoothie-sipping athletes, Rohit Sharma serves up a raw, unfiltered vibe that we can&rsquo;t get enough of. Mumbai&rsquo;s ultimate local lad might captain squads and lift global trophies, but at heart, he&rsquo;s just a Borivli boy who managed to escape the local train rush.
<img src="http://images.mid-day.com/images/images/2026/may/Rohit-Sharma-a_e.jpg" alt="Rohit Sharma" width="1280" height="720" /> Rohit Sharma
Listening to him chat about his cricket roots recently, I found myself thoroughly obsessed with his &lsquo;khichdi Marathi&rsquo; &mdash; a dialect so wonderfully chaotic it deserves its own linguistic category. But if the syntax wasn&rsquo;t relatable enough, his true love language is what cements his icon status: food. Long before the international stadium lights, the Hitman was dominating South Mumbai&rsquo;s legendary maidans &mdash; Cross, Azad, and the rest &mdash; where true talents are forged in the dust.
Looking back, Rohit recalls grinding it out at the Sassanian and Fort Vijay grounds, but his ultimate core memory? The local khao gully. Specifically, gorging with absolute glee on the legendary banana rasiyan post-game. It&rsquo;s a sweet, comforting, elite-tier street reward that easily beats any high-end, liquefied superfood. Never change, Rohit. Keep the trophies coming, but please, keep the street food recommendations coming faster.

It's time to redirect our lens, because the real MVP of the international red-carpet season is Rhea Kapoor, who isn't standing in front of the flashing cameras

Sonali`s Society: Manasi Joshi Roy on Shabana Azmi, Rhea Kapoor`s global fashion universe

Sonali's Society: Kareena Kapoor's summer fashion, and Naseeruddin Shah-Imtiaz Ali bonding

Among others, television veteran Manasi Joshi Roy naturally recognises cinematic royalty — making her pick of enduring icon Shabana Azmi entirely understandable

Sonali's Society: Manasi Joshi Roy on Shabana Azmi, Rhea Kapoor's global fashion

Timeless beauty Manasi Joshi Roy on Shabana Azmi

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