The little things make all the difference

Niharika Khan, the National award-winning costume designer of The Dirty Picture, talks about the three films that have inspired her most.

In The Mood For Love (2000)
I have an affinity to little details in what I do. For me, when a person sees a movie for the 60th time, they should notice something new about the film. In this regard, I greatly admire Wong Kar-Wai films, especially In The Mood For Love. The director has paid great attention to details, whether it’s the colours or the accessories. One can easily notice the richness of the fabrics in the various costumes in the film. The high necklines, the piping on the dresses, and the 23 cheongsams (fitted Chinese dresses) that actress Maggie Cheung wore in the film are all beautiful. That apart, the costumes were also in sync with the sets of the film, another quality I admire. When I was designing for Band Baaja Baaraat, I looked into every intricate detail of the designing process. I don’t know how many people noticed but in Band Baaja Baaraat, Bittu (Ranveer Singh) is wearing a bracelet with his name written on it. These little things matter to me. And since there were so many weddings in the movie, that too of different economic backgrounds, detailing played a big role.

Kama Sutra (1996)

Another film whose designing I love is Kama Sutra. It was a complete package. Even though the movie didn’t work, one cannot ignore the brilliant designing in the film. I’m an accessory designer as well, so jewellery is very important for me. I’m not a big fan of fake jewellery and the actors in Kama Sutra all wore real jewellery. The costumes, the hairdos, the accessories, all play a big part of the designing process, and in Kama Sutra, everything came together to match the tone of the film, as should happen in a costume drama. Similarly, when I have a presentation, everything needs to be at hand, including items like lingerie. In The Dirty Picture, we designed conical bras for Vidya Balan in order to fit in with the theme of the film. The lighting, colours and photography in Kama Sutra complemented the costumes in the film. Even in The Dirty Picture, I had amazing synchronisation with the art director and the director of photography.

Trainspotting (1996)

I also find the designing in Trainspotting truly inspirational. It’s the kind of movie where you come out after watching it and say that you want to be a part of such a film. The way Ewan McGregor dresses in the film, as well as all the other actors, it all matches with the mood of the film. Even though the costumes are casual and basic, they reflect the dark, dull and drab sensitivities of the film. While designing for , we kept the grittiness premise of the film in mind. A lot of thought went into what every actor wore. For my next film Kai Po Che, directed by Abhishek Kapoor, I’m doing the designing keeping in mind that I will be getting the flavour of Gujarat in every aspect of the presentation. 

As told to Shikha Kumar