Masala or massala (Hindi: मसाला; Bengali: মশলা; Urdu: مصالحہ) is a term used in South Asian cuisines (including Indian, Nepali, Bangladeshi, and Pakistani cuisines) to mostly describe a mixture of spices. A masala can either be a combination of dried (and usually dry roasted) spices, or a paste (such as vindaloo masala) made from a mixture of spices and other ingredients—often garlic, ginger, onions and chilli paste. Masalas are used extensively in Indian cuisine to add spice and flavor.

Vijayalakshmi Vadlapati(Telugu: విజయలక్ష్మి వడ్లపతి), known popularly as Silk Smitha was an Indian film artiste who worked predominantly in the South Indian languages. She entered the film industry as an extra actress, and first got noticed for her role as "Silk" in the 1979 Tamil film Vandichakkaram. She became a sought-after 'erotic actress' in the 1980s and in a career spanning 17 years, she appeared in over 450 films in Tamil, Malayalam, Telugu, Kannada and Hindi languages. On September 23, 1996, she was found dead in her apartment in Chennai, apparently having committed suicide.

Vadlapati Vijayalakshmi was born in a poor family in Eluru, Andhra Pradesh. She left school after her fourth standard (in India, at about 8 years of age) due to the family's financial constraints. Her striking looks burdened her with uninvited attention, and her family married her off at a very young age. When she was ill-treated by her husband and in-laws, she ran away to Madras (now known as Chennai) and started living with an aunt.

Zubaida Tariq, often called Zubaida Aapa, is a renowned chef and cooking expert from Pakistan.

Originally from Karachi, Zubaida was born into a prominent Urdu-speaking family known throughout the country for producing litterateurs, intellectuals and artists. Her maternal grand-uncle was Bahadur Yar Jung, a famous Muslim nationalist of the Indian subcontinent. She has ten other siblings, the most notable of whom include Fatima Surayya Bajia - an Urdu novelist and playwright; Zehra Nigah, an Urdu poet; and her brother Anwar Maqsood, who is a popular poet, humorist, writer and entertainer. Zubaida's nephew Bilal Maqsood (Anwar's son) is a vocalist and guitarist for the pop rock band Strings.