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A powerhouse of talent

Designer Rick Roy opens up on the science of styling, being a hippie and a plus-size crusader…

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In a scenario, where film and red carpet styling has been reduced to calling brands and sourcing clothes and asking actresses to pick and choose, Rick Roy cuts a unique figure. The nonchalant man designs each outfit with respect, exactitude and purpose, which stays true to the character in the film. He hates attending film parties, never posts pictures of his star friends on social media and is a complete antithesis to what a typical Bollywood stylist stands for. Be it the sexy-yet-tasteful Munni of Dabangg or the Fashion Khatam siren of Dolly Ki Doli – his creations reflect a kinetic mix of offhand elegance and sass. The soon-to-be-released Gabbar starring Akshay Kumar has already been in news for Khiladi's raw, ruffian makeover given by Roy.
I meet him at his artfully, shambolic bachelor pad in Bandra and I find it difficult to take my eyes off his arresting artworks (yes, he paints too!) – there's a soul-searing Kali painting and another deconstructed painting evoking erotica.

Focus on characters, not brands
The Kolkata boy studied in NIFT, Mumbai and did his masters in theatre costumes from FIT. "I love films and films are a medium where you can actually create characters through clothes. They needn't be glamorous or all about designer names. You don't put labels on an actress just because she likes it. I focus more on the character than the individual essaying it because that's why I am hired," says he.
Sometimes the characters looks like the actresses while it should be the other way round. "It's also a designer's job to make the actor understand that this is what you want to wear but the character demands something else, which you might not like but will work for you onscreen."

Economics of filmmaking
"You have to learn to work under constraints. You have to make things work for screen – you can easily pick a pair of Jimmy Choo boots worth Rs 2 lakhs but you can also pick a non-branded pair which works as well. You have to be production friendly." Also, because he designs and doesn't source, a lot is in his control. "If there is an outfit which needs that much money to be spent, I'll do it. When it's not necessary, I budget it accordingly," he adds.
Having worked for television shows and ad commercials, he started doing films only two years ago. "2012 was my first release. However, I have been part of films circuit for many years thanks to Arbaaz and Malaika. A stylist is someone who assesses an actor's body type and analyses which aspects work and which doesn't," he says.

Social media circus
"I treat fashion and films as my job and I enjoy it but it's not the be-all and end-all of my life. I honestly don't believe in promoting myself on Twitter and Instagram. Maybe it works for some people. I'd rather put images of food and my friends than a picture of me with Malaika which will get me a lot more followers. My agent and other people think I'm being stupid because it's the age of social media. Work is just one aspect of my life and I don't want my profession to become my identity."

Hippie at heart
"I live to eat and travel. What do you work for? Of course, it gives you a lot of pleasure but eventually the point is to live your life - which is very important. Most of the time I'm only in the city for work otherwise I'm travelling. That's how I have designed my life and I'm quite happy with it. I do two or three films, take off for four months and come back. I have done 10 films in three years which is a sort of a record," says the man, who's worked with the likes of Sudhir Mishra, Sajid Khan and Raj Kumar Gupta.

Flirtation with the arts
"Art is something which keeps me sane. I didn't study art or followed works of any artists. I love to paint which makes me very happy. I'm contemplating doing an art show in April. It's very personal to me. It's not a business or work. It's an extension of myself and I like to keep it that way," shares he.

The Kolkata chromosome
"My mom used to do miniatures. My dad also paints a lot. I come from an intellectual Bengali family where the father wants you to paint and mother wants you to sing," he says with a smile.

More to me than glam slam
Since Rick started with styling Malaika, there's a perception that he's an item song maven but he's keen to do films which have much nuanced characters with multi-layered complexities. "Don't get me wrong, I love doing item songs and shiny clothes. I can do glamour with my eyes shut. However, you give me a Vidya (Balan) and ask me to design her look for a character – that'll be quite exciting."
He's keen to do character-driven films with Imtiaz Ali or Raju Hirani.

Plus-size crusader
"I want to make couture outfits for plus-size women. There are so many gorgeous full-bodied women who are stuck to wearing kurtas. Also, women are killing themselves to look a certain way. I want to create clothes for people who don't fit into any mould and still look beautiful. The amazing thing will be to pick someone who thinks she is imperfect and give her an outfit so that she falls in love with herself. Whenever I launch my label, I'll create clothes for the so-called imperfect people," he signs off.

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