Eknath Gaikwad was a prominent Indian politician and a senior leader of the Indian National Congress from Maharashtra. Known for his deep grassroots connection, especially in Mumbai's Dharavi constituency, Gaikwad dedicated decades of his life to public service and the welfare of marginalized communities. He began his political journey at the grassroots level, eventually rising to become a three-time Member of the Legislative Assembly representing the Dharavi constituency in 1985, 1990, and 1999. During his tenure in the Maharashtra state legislature, he served as a minister, holding key portfolios that focused on social justice and urban development. Gaikwad transitioned to national politics in 2004 when he successfully contested the Lok Sabha elections from the Mumbai South Central constituency. In a historic victory, he defeated the veteran Shiv Sena leader and former Lok Sabha Speaker, Manohar Joshi. He secured a second consecutive term as Member of Parliament in 2009, continuing his advocacy for urban infrastructure and the rights of slum dwellers. Later in his career, he was appointed as the President of the Mumbai Regional Congress Committee in 2019, where he worked to strengthen the party's organizational framework in the city. He passed away on April 28, 2021, due to COVID-19 complications, leaving behind a legacy of dedicated public service. His daughter, Varsha Gaikwad, continues his political legacy as a prominent Congress leader.

Narayan Tatu Rane is a prominent Indian politician from the state of Maharashtra who has served in various high-ranking administrative capacities. He served as the Union Minister of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises in the Government of India from 2021 to 2024. He previously served as the Chief Minister of Maharashtra in 1999. Rane began his political career with the Shiv Sena, rising through the ranks to lead the state government. After a split with the party leadership, he joined the Indian National Congress in 2005 and served as a cabinet minister in Maharashtra holding key portfolios like revenue and industry. In 2017, he resigned from Congress and formed the Maharashtra Swabhimaan Paksha, which later merged with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in 2019. Known for his strong influence in the Konkan region of Maharashtra, Rane was elected as a Member of Parliament to the Lok Sabha from the Ratnagiri-Sindhudurg constituency in the 2024 general elections.

Anisha Prakash Padukone is an Indian executive, mental health advocate, and former professional athlete who serves as the Chief Executive Officer of The Live Love Laugh Foundation (LLL), a premier non-profit organization dedicated to raising awareness, ending stigma, and providing resources for stress, anxiety, and depression in India. Born in Bengaluru to travel agent Ujjala Padukone and legendary Indian badminton player Prakash Padukone, she is the younger sister of prominent Bollywood actress Deepika Padukone. From a young age, Anisha exhibited a deep passion for sports, taking up golf at the age of twelve. She advanced rapidly through the amateur circuits to achieve a top-10 national ranking as a professional golfer, representing India in international tournaments. She completed her higher education with a graduate degree in Psychology, Sociology, and Economics, laying the foundational knowledge that would later guide her corporate and philanthropic endeavors. In 2016, following her sister's public disclosure of her personal battle with depression, Anisha joined the newly established Live Love Laugh Foundation to oversee its administrative and operational programs. Appointed as CEO, she has been instrumental in spearheading the foundation's strategic growth, notably scaling its community-based rural mental health model to serve tens of thousands of beneficiaries and caregivers across marginalized communities in India. She expanded her advocacy internationally as a member of the World Economic Forum's Global Future Council for Mental Health and completed an executive education program in Strategic Nonprofit Management jointly run by Harvard Business School and Ashoka University.

Sadashiv Ramchandra Sarvankar, popularly known as Sada Sarvankar, is an influential Indian politician representing the Mahim Assembly constituency in Mumbai, Maharashtra. He is a senior leader of the Shiv Sena and has served as a Member of the Legislative Assembly for multiple terms. Sarvankar started his political career at the grassroots level as a local worker for the Shiv Sena in Mumbai. His dedication led to his election as a municipal corporator in the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation, where he served for multiple terms and established a strong base in the Dadar and Mahim areas. He made his debut in the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly in 2004 by winning the Mahim seat. Following a brief departure from the Shiv Sena in 2009 due to internal party differences, during which he joined the Indian National Congress, Sarvankar returned to the Shiv Sena fold. He successfully contested and won the Mahim constituency again in the 2014 and 2019 assembly elections. During the major political crisis within the Shiv Sena in 2022, Sarvankar chose to align himself with Eknath Shinde's faction, which eventually gained recognition as the official Shiv Sena party. He is known for his close connect with local citizens, active involvement in community festivals like Ganeshotsav, and addressing urban infrastructure challenges in Mumbai.

Geet Siriram Sethi is an iconic Indian professional cue sports player who heavily dominated the international arena of English billiards throughout the 1980s and 1990s. Born in Delhi and raised in Ahmedabad, Gujarat, Sethi established himself as a prominent master of the green baize, claiming the World Professional Billiards Championship five times and the World Amateur Billiards Championship thrice. He is globally celebrated for his exceptional break-building skills, including a historic world-record break of 1,276 constructed under the three-pot rule in 1992. Sethi holds a unique distinction in cue sports history as the only player to have achieved both an official maximum break of 147 in competitive snooker and a 1000-plus break in competitive billiards. Beyond individual records, he represented India with distinction at multiple multi-sport competitions, securing gold, silver, and bronze medals across the Asian Games. For his legendary athletic achievements, he was honored with India's highest sporting honor, the Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna Award, alongside civilian recognitions like the Padma Shri. Following his distinguished active playing career, Sethi transitioned into a prominent sports administrator and entrepreneur. In 2001, he joined forces with fellow Indian sporting icon Prakash Padukone to co-found Olympic Gold Quest (OGQ), a highly successful non-profit foundation dedicated to identifying, mentoring, and funding elite Indian athletes to help them achieve Olympic podium success. He is also an alumnus of Gujarat University, an accomplished author of the motivational book 'Success vs Joy', and oversees a private enterprise, Raag Travels, based out of Ahmedabad.

Pankaj Arjan Advani is a globally acclaimed Indian cue sports athlete who has achieved unprecedented excellence in both billiards and snooker. Born in Pune, Advani spent his early childhood in Kuwait before moving to Bangalore in 1990. Introduced to cue sports at the age of ten under the guidance of coach Arvind Savur, he quickly rose through the junior and senior ranks to establish himself as a dominant force in the sport. Advani holds an extraordinary record as a multiple-time International Billiards and Snooker Federation (IBSF) World Champion. He made history by becoming the only player to win world titles in both the long and short formats of snooker, as well as both the time and points formats of English billiards. His professional breakthrough came during the 2012/2013 season when he joined the main snooker tour, achieving a top 64 world ranking before choosing to balance his professional commitments with his billiards career. Alongside his competitive career, he serves at a chief managerial level for the Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC). In recognition of his stellar contributions to Indian sports, the Government of India has honored him with several of its highest accolades, including the Arjuna Award in 2004, the Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna in 2006, the Padma Shri in 2009, and the Padma Bhushan in 2018. Renowned for his mental resilience and versatility across multiple formats, Advani remains an iconic figure in international cue sports.

Rashmi Thackeray is an Indian journalist, businesswoman, and key political strategist who serves as the editor-in-chief of the influential Marathi daily newspaper Saamana and the weekly magazine Marmik. She is best known as the wife of Uddhav Thackeray, the former Chief Minister of Maharashtra and the president of the Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray) political party. Born as Rashmi Patankar in Dombivli, Maharashtra, she grew up in a middle-class family and pursued her higher education at the Vaze Kelkar College in Mulund, Mumbai. She married Uddhav Thackeray in 1989, thereby entering one of India's most powerful political families, founded by Bal Thackeray. Over the decades, Rashmi has played a crucial role as a silent strategist and trusted advisor to her husband during major political transitions. In March 2020, she stepped into a formal public role by taking over as the editor of Saamana, a position previously held by her husband before he assumed the Chief Minister's office. She is the mother of Aaditya Thackeray, a prominent political leader and former Maharashtra Cabinet Minister, and Tejas Thackeray, an acclaimed wildlife researcher. Rashmi Thackeray remains a pivotal figure in managing the political, media, and familial legacies of the Thackeray family, exerting quiet but formidable influence over Maharashtra's political dynamics.

Bala Nandgaonkar is a prominent Indian politician from Maharashtra and a senior leader of the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS). He is widely recognized as one of the closest and most trusted aides of MNS chief Raj Thackeray. Nandgaonkar began his political journey with the Shiv Sena under the leadership of Bal Thackeray. He rose to statewide fame in 1995 when he defeated the heavyweight Congress leader Chhagan Bhujbal in the Mazgaon assembly constituency, earning a reputation as a giant-killer in Maharashtra politics. Following this victory, he served as the Minister of State for Home in the Shiv Sena-BJP coalition government. In 2006, following internal rifts within the Shiv Sena, Nandgaonkar resigned from the party and his legislative seat to join Raj Thackeray in founding the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena. He successfully contested the 2009 Maharashtra Legislative Assembly elections from the Sewri constituency, representing the MNS, and served as the leader of the party's legislative group in the assembly. Over the decades, Nandgaonkar has remained a key strategist, organizational builder, and public face for the MNS, representing its interests in Mumbai and throughout the state of Maharashtra.