Shruti Haasan has never been the person the world assumes her to be. In this deeply personal conversation with Sneha Menon Desai for The Hollywood Reporter India's League of Excellence powered by BMW India, the actress-musician peels back the layers of a public persona built over two decades — revealing the socially awkward backbencher who listened to metal and sketched alone, the introvert who found music's solitude comfortable but had to learn how to simply exist on a film set. At 40, Shruti reflects not with triumph but with a disarming confession: "I feel like I haven't learned enough. I haven't done enough. I haven't grown enough." She speaks about the years of crippling anxiety that made daily life impossible, the break from cinema that took her to London where she did her own laundry, took the tube to museums, and rebuilt her relationship with music from scratch — testing songs on audiences who had no expectations of Kamal Haasan's daughter.

What emerges is a portrait of dichotomy that Shruti not only accepts but cherishes. She is the "bright burning red" energy with a "stable core" surrounded by chaos; the woman with a "healthy dose of unapologetic insanity" who also harbors a "romantic vulnerable girl still stuck at 16." When Anupama asks about her father's famous shoulders, Shruti reframes the question entirely — those shoulders don't represent something to climb, but the comfort and nurturing of her "appa." She dissects the double standards women face ("what was considered abrasive in a woman is considered leadership in a man"), admits that living life on her own terms comes with loneliness, and reveals her severe allergic reaction to victim mentality. With 50 unreleased songs sitting quietly because she creates art for herself first, Shruti Haasan isn't chasing excellence — she's navigating it, one broken wall at a time.

In this episode of THR India's League of Excellence, Anupama Chopra sits down with Bollywood action star Tiger Shroff for an in-depth conversation about his decade-long journey in Hindi cinema. Tiger opens up about the discipline he inherited from his athletic background, how the failure of his mother Ayesha Shroff's production Boom shaped his risk-averse approach to filmmaking, and the lessons he learned working alongside his idol Hrithik Roshan in War. From his family's financial struggles to carving out his identity as an action hero independent of his father Jackie Shroff's shadow, Tiger reflects on the highs and lows with remarkable candour.

The conversation also delves into Tiger's evolution as a performer—his sister's brutally honest feedback about being "too selfish" on screen, his fear of flying despite performing death-defying stunts, and his obsessive commitment to fitness that his trainers have to physically restrain. Tiger reveals exciting details about his upcoming projects, including Lag Jaa Gale with Dharma Productions directed by Raj Mehta, where he plays a character unlike anything he's done before, and the long-awaited Rambo remake that's finally back on track. This is a rare, vulnerable look at the man behind Bollywood's most spectacular action sequences.

In this candid conversation with Anupama Chopra for The Hollywood Reporter India's League of Excellence powered by BMW India, Saif Ali Khan opens up about the harrowing knife attack at his Mumbai home in January 2025 that nearly left him paralysed. The National Award-winning actor reflects on his remarkable 32-year journey since his debut in Parampara, discussing the evolution from romantic comedy hero to critically acclaimed performer in films like Omkara, where director Vishal Bhardwaj pushed him to deliver a career-defining turn as the villainous Langda Tyagi. Saif shares intimate details about his relationship with wife Kareena Kapoor Khan, revealing how Rani Mukerji's advice helped him navigate dating a fellow star, and speaks movingly about the challenges of watching his children Sara Ali Khan and Ibrahim Ali Khan forge their own paths in the film industry.

The actor delves into his philosophy on craft, discussing the importance of separating vanity from good work and his excitement about reuniting with Akshay Kumar after 17 years for director Priyadarshan's upcoming thriller Haiwaan, where he plays a visually impaired music teacher opposite Akshay's menacing antagonist. Saif candidly addresses the pressures of relevance in Bollywood, his deliberate choice to stay off social media, and why he believes maintaining mystery is a valuable currency in an age of constant exposure. Drawing parallels to Mani Ratnam's experience of being attacked after Bombay's release in 1995, Saif reflects on how artists process trauma, while also sharing his thoughts on acting technique, the art of listening, and what it means to endure in an industry that constantly demands reinvention.