TeamRomail Gulzar FRSA is founder and director of Pukaar Group, a multinational media and events company headquartered in Leicester, England.
Romail’s media journey began in 2010 when he launched Pukaar News, a news agency and website which later provided broadcast media for the BBC, Sky and ITV and started the careers of dozens of local young journalists and other media professionals. The launch into print of Pukaar Magazine followed and which recently celebrated its tenth anniversary and featured cover stars such as Sir David Attenborough, Singer Sam Bailey and Olympian Luke Greenbank.
After establishing his successful media organisations Romail turned his attention to creating a host of entertainment events to showcase local talent with a focus on inclusion and diversity. Leicester’s Got Talent, an annual competition that began in 2013, shines a light on young gifted performers and to give them a platform to grow in confidence, provide them further career opportunities and to raise their public profile.
Next came the annual Leicester Curry Awards to support the industry by recognising and rewarding the finest dining venues. It attracted worldwide attention and was televised to a global audience by the PTC Punjabi network along with regional and local media coverage from ITV News, BBC, Pukaar News and Leicester Mercury. Now in its sixth year, the event is being rebranded the Leicestershire Curry Awards to recognise the industry in the county and in Rutland too. The formula has been so successful Romail has taken it around the world launching the Toronto Curry Awards in 2018 to widespread praise and this year there are plans to launch in Paris and Lisbon.
Romail is also active in the community and saw how positively people responded to help others during the worst of the pandemic and when many felt isolated by the lockdowns. Romail helped to unite the community and provide help where it was most needed. He launched the Always In Our Thoughts campaign to recognise and remember people who had been affected by Covid-19 and raised funds for two charities. The success of the campaign was formally acknowledged by then Prime Minister, Boris Johnson MP.
In 2022 Romail unveiled plans to launch the Ethnic Media Awards, a flagship event to recognise professionals from a minority ethnic background working in our media industries. It will be the first of its kind in promoting and rewarding individuals who are pushing the boundaries of accomplishment in their chosen field.
Last year, Romail launched Leicester Times, an online weekly newspaper to give a voice and a platform to inspiring individuals, delivering real-life stories that people care about – putting the heart back into local news coverage to bring people and communities together.