4 min readMumbaiSep 11, 2026 06:39 PM IST
At the 2025 Oscars, Manish Malhotra dressed Guneet Monga in a corset sari, blending Indian tradition with modern elegance. Discover how this exclusive handwoven ensemble made a bold statement on the global stage. (Source: Manish Malhotra/Instagram)
“Producing is all about hustle. Hustling is not a bad thing,” said two-time Oscar-winning Indian producer Guneet Monga Kapoor, while asking film students at Whistling Woods International, Mumbai to “own your hustle” during a masterclass organized by Screen Academy, a non-profit initiative launched by The Indian Express Group to identify, support, and mentor the next generation of filmmakers and creative voices in India. Guneet, for co-producing short documentary Period. End of Sentence in 2019, and backing documentary feature The Elephant Whisperers (2023), has over 45 films to the credit of Sikhya Entertainment.
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“Given in India, we largely come from family-run businesses, there’s an understanding that the one who puts in the money is the producer,” pointed out Guneet, before reminding the students that she doesn’t come from money. During childhood, she lived with her parents in the suburbs of Delhi in a rented apartment with Rs 5,000 as rent. Even after relocating to after some progress in her production career, she shared an apartment with five other girls during her period of struggle. “Money for survival was also tough, forget money for investment,” she recalled.