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The art of design
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Anna Singh tells P. ANIMA about the experience of designing costumes for films
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Photo: R. Shivaji Rao
Dressing up stars Anna Singh
Anna Singh dabbles with the finery of a Moghul empress and the look of a chic girl next door with equal finesse. With over 700 films behind her in a career spanning two decades, costume designer Anna admits it is difficult to find inspiring work. But
it is the challenge that a “Taj Mahal” or an “Umrao Jaan” poses that makes her day. She took home the National Award last year for bringing alive an era through costumes in “Taj Mahal.”
Now, another project has taken her back “to work.” The much-hyped directorial venture of Ajay Devgan, “U, Me or Hum”, to be released this Friday, has revived Anna’s spirits. Working for a long-time friend and a committed director who gave her all the creative freedom makes “U, Me or Hum” special.
Excerpts from an interview with the designer.
There is a lot of hype around “U, Me aur Hum.” Besides being Ajay’s directorial venture, it also brings back Ajay and Kajol together on screen after a considerable gap. From a designer’s point of view, how did approach the film?
“U, Me or Hum” has been a fantastic experience. I have been taking care of Ajay’s personal wardrobe for over five years now. He is a person who leaves it to you totally. The colours used in the film are refreshing. We sat and worked on each character’s look. The characters have a real appearance as conceived by the director.
Whom have you designed for in the film and what is the look you have given them?
I have done the clothes for the entire cast, except Kajol, whose clothes were done by her personal designer Manish Malhotra. I made the costume for the primary and secondary cast and also the junior artistes. In terms of costume, Ajay’s character is divided into two phases. I have given him a happy and bright, sun-coloured look for the cruise phase, and as a medical professional, he is mostly dressed in nice suits. Since he plays a person in the medical field, I had little liberty designing for that phase.
Other members of the cast such as Karan Khanna have a flamboyant look. He dresses like any young guy today with lots of accessories. Isha Sharvani looks funky but not over the top. Sumeet Raghavan and Divya Dutta have been dressed keeping in the mind the different situations. The look is not glossy but realistic. The costumes are done in such a way that the audience can relate to the characters. Even for the dance sequence with Salsa dancers, the outfits are authentic. There is a deliberate attempt to look fresh and happy. Colours have been used intelligently.
You have designed for challenging projects such as “Taj Mahal” and “Umrao Jaan” as well as out-and-out commercial ventures. How do you strike a balance?
People like me who believe in hardcore creativity are suffering now. Costume designing for films has been reduced to going on a shopping spree. The designer has to do very little. In “U, Me Aur Hum”, I was designing for a friend and it was like my own production. Otherwise, designing for commercial movies has become a natural reflex. In two hours, I can do the entire cast on paper.
How has costume designing in Bollywood changed over the years?
Things have changed in terms of the appearance of actors. Years ago, when Jackie Shroff appeared, his clothes spoke for him. I design differently for each actor. But today, one actor looks like the other.
What u next?
I am opening a new store with a new line. I have just finished working for a Sooraj Barjatya production, and then there is Subhash Ghai’s “Yuvraj.”
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