Manish Malhotra

From her high-fashion costume stint in Student of the Year and minimum costume changes in Highway, Alia Bhatt had a completely new wardrobe to wear as Ananya Subramaniam in 2 States.

What Alia Bhatt wore

Styled by Manish Malhotra, Alia Bhatt wore a range of cotton kurtas—in neon shades, with jeans, or with a denim waistcoat. Her tees and tank tops were paired with ghagra skirts, and accessorised with jhumkas, cotton scarves and Kolhapuri wedges.

While Alia Bhatt looked great, I got a sense of déjà vu. I had spotted similar looks in other movies like Kareena Kapoor in Bodyguard (also styled by Manish Malhotra) and Kangana Ranaut in Tanu Weds Manu and Queen. All these looks are very Indo-boho / ethnic. You’d probably get Alia Bhatt’s huge collection of jhumkas, ghagra skirts and other such ethnic stuff Mumbai’s Colaba or Linking Road market and I’m sure every Indian town has such a market or two. There are also several local brands like Global Desi and Fab India who stock Indian-looking separates and accessories.

So what do girls at IIM wear?

While Alia Bhatt looks great and is styled well, I wondered what does a girl studying at IIM really wear? There is no definite answer of course- but I got some inputs from my hubby S (an IIM alumnus). While he claims he doesn’t remember much of his two years there (yeah, RIGHT!), and especially not what the girls wore, he add an interesting statement or two to make.

“The girls at IIM did not have time to accessorise or wear makeup.”

Packed lecture schedules, multiple projects and ongoing tests leaves IIM students with little or no time to do anything other than study. So for the girls there, there’s almost no time to find the right earrings before class or carefully apply liner to their upper and lower lash lines. But hey, I liked Alia’s nude pink lip colours.

“They mostly wore business suits to placement interviews.”

Alia Bhatt’s character Ananya wore a sari to her placement interview with Sunsilk (an HUL brand). Hubby confirms that almost all women wore business suits for their interviews- crisp shirt and trousers, blazer et al. Only one or two students chose to wear saris instead. Nice to know that Ananya was one of the rare ones!

“Only a handful of the girls were fashion-conscious.”

Ananya is clearly fashion-conscious- but while she doesn’t seem to follow trends, she has a flair for trying the quirky. Also, she seems to have a good fashion sense off campus as well. She wore a gorgeous sari to her boyfriend’s cousin’s wedding in Delhi- traditional but with bright colours. Given her fashion choices and cute looks, no wonder 11 guys hit on her on the first day at IIM!

What did you think of Alia Bhatt’s outfits in 2 States?

In LFW WF 2013

LFW WF 2013: The best of festive wear

Speaking ChicSeptember 3, 2013September 2, 2013Leave a comment

Now that Lakme Fashion Week Winter/Festive 2013 has ended, it’s time to make some serious fashion choices for the upcoming season (Diwali, weddings and more). Lehengas, anarkalis, saris and more… take your pick from my shortlist. Take inspirations from these designer outfits so you can celebrate looking stylish. 😉

PS — Don’t miss the cool cinemagraphs shot from the Nokia Lumia 820 embedded below.

Debarun
Debarun’s festive, yet non blingy collection mixed beige, ivory and red, with a geometric print forming the “base” of the collection.

Manish Malhotra
The two trends to take away from this collection– chic mirror work and desi-inspired colour blocking.

SVA by Sonam & Paras Modi
Peacock motifs and earthy colours dominated Sonam & Paras Modi’s SVA Couture collection. The embellishments were just about right– not too OTT.

Payal Singhal
Black is almost an acceptable colour now for the festive season (if not weddings), and paired with pale blush pink it made quite an impact. Also, the printed dupattas with colour blocked lehengas are a new look to try.

Ritika by Vivek Kumar
Vivek Kumar’s collection is for those who wan an “Indo-western” look. I liked the embroidered yokes and some of the metallic embellishments.

In Bollywood Fashion

Bollywood Fashion : Why Sonakshi Sinha is a fashion flop in OUATIMD, and Akshay Kumar isn’t

Speaking ChicAugust 20, 2013August 19, 2013Leave a comment

I saw Once Upon A Time In Mumbai Dobaara (OUATIMD) over the weekend, and I wasn’t impressed by the movie, and definitely not by the fashion. Sonakshi Sinha’s costumes, designed / styled by Manish Malhotra were a complete let-down. Here’s why:
Sonakshi was not wearing the right fits

Sonakshi Sinha’s wardrobe disaster in Once Upon a Time in Mumbai Dobaara is primarily because of the ill-fitting outfits that she’s wearing. Yes, she’s a plus-sized actor, but that doesn’t excuse the tailoring. The knee-length kurtas were too tight for her– unsightly bulge jutted out at the sleeves and the back.

Sonakshi’s outfits were wrong for her body type
The camera adds 10 pounds and the silver screen another 10, I’d say. While the costume design team had to stick to the styles and trends of the era, Sonakshi looked bloated and way too plump next to the fit Akshay Kumar and skinny Imran Khan. Tweaking the outfits to better suit her body shape would have helped. Like the kurtas could be a bit looser on the chest and hips, and the necklines should have been higher.

The era was all wrong

Contrast dupattas are a fairly recent phenomenon, so Sonakshi shouldn’t have been wearing them in the movie. They weren’t around in the 1970s and 80s. I remember my mom and aunts wearing dupattas that were the same colour as their kurta and salwar. And the little prints on her kurtas can be found in any bazaar, department store or ethnic brand store in India today!

The costumes didn’t match the character
Sonakshi plays a naive aspiring actor from small-town Kashmir, and a girl with such a background would NOT be wearing such low necklies or plunging backs. And the dupatta would actually cover up her chest, not play peek a boo.

Sonakshi’s makeup could be so much better
Blush, eye shadow, liner and lipstick, all put together in a single look made me feel the makeup artist could have done a far better job. Sonakshi looked lovely in the scenes in which there was no hint of lipstick or rouge. And oh, the silver nail polish. Really?
Is the off-screen Sonakshi more fashionable?

BTW, Sonakshi looked lovely in some of the events promoting the film, much more real and relaxed, and carrying similar looks but looking much more fashionable and comfortable. The fits seemed right this time. What say?

A word on Akshay Kumar’s costumes

Akshay Kumar looked pretty much the gangster comfortable in his own skin. While I thought Akshay’s acting was over-the-top, his look was very well styled by Kunal Rawal.

Kunal dressed Akshay Kumar in solid and striped shirts in colours like like deep wine, burgundy, and steel grey teamed with muted jackets in greys, navy and black. Unmissable accessories defined the man and his persona– a mix of classy (Cartier watch), trendy (over-sized dark sunglasses) and wanting to show who’s boss (shiny and pointy shoes). Slick and stylish!

BTW, another great piece of movie styling by Kunal Rawal is Aisha (click here to read about the Aisha costumes).

What did you think of the costumes in Once Upon A Time in Mumbai Dobara?

In Bollywood Fashion

Bollywood Fashion: Get Deepika Padukone’s Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani looks in just one step

Speaking ChicJune 4, 2013June 4, 2013Leave a comment

Deepika Padukone can wear almost anything and look pretty in it. In Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani her character Naina wears a whole variety of clothes and looks great in all of them. Unfortunately, Deepika’s looks in the movie are as stereotyped and predictable as the storyline, sometimes inappropriate and sometimes just bizarre. I’m not too impressed with costume designer Manish Malhotra’s styling for this movie.

Either way, if you want to adopt Deepika Padukone’s looks, here’s a simple one-step guide to the three key looks she dons in the movie.

Geeky student

The plain Jane Deepika wears squarish geeky glasses that indicate her studiousness, with simple printed dresses covered up with a light jacket or cardigan. Her straight hair is pulled back into a ponytail or held back with a hair band. BTW, on cold nights, while camping in the Himachal outdoors, Deepika looks surprisingly cozy in knee length dresses!

One step look: Dark rimmed glasses.

Transformation time

Deepika Padukone’s transformation from geeky girl to sexy lass was completed in the most predictable way– by getting drunk, swapping the spectacles for contact lenses, and ditching the comfortable outfits for tiny shorts and prancing around during Holi (when most Indian women want to stay indoors).

One step look: Hot shot pants

Head-turning hottie

Once the transformation was complete, we didn’t get to see much of Deepika until a grand wedding in Udaipur. At the wedding, Deepika is pretty much the centre of attention with tiny blouses and low waist lehengas. With her low neck kurtas that are barely concealed by a dupatta, Naina is ultra feminine and desi sexy.

One step look: Midriff-baring lehenga or tight kurta.

Which Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani look do you want to try?

In 2012, Fashion

Chic Guide: 5 things you need this December

Speaking ChicDecember 4, 2012December 3, 2012Leave a comment

Winter jackets and coats

For the cold, cold weather! Choose from leather, faux fur and wool.

French Connection (wool)

Gas (faux fur)

Blingy dress

To party the last few nights of the year away!

Vizyon

Mango

Vero Moda

Embellished lehenga

There will be plenty of weddings to attend this month- and you need to dress to impress!

Pallavi Jaikishen

Manish Malhotra

Shyamal-Bhumika

Gorgeous earrings

For party nights (diamonds), for sangeet (jadau and polkis), and for weddings (traditional).

Myra by Tara Jewellers

Neety Singh

Nizam Collection by Ganjam

High heels

Special occasions call for special shoes… who knows, your Cinderella story might come true. 😉

Metro

Steve Madden

In 2012, Bollywood Fashion

Bollywood Fashion: Student of the Year is all about the brands

Speaking ChicOctober 25, 2012October 25, 2012Leave a comment

Karan Johar’s movies are not known for portraying stark reality, but Student of the Year is based in a hyper-real world. The “school” in the movie (St. Teresa) is perhaps the size of Hogwarts, houses students who are impossibly multi-faceted, good-looking and rich, and even the “Bata” gang dresses in premium brands.

Brands, brands, brands!

Alia Bhatt is Shanaya, the vain bimbo, who marvels at her beauty and pampers herself with brands. You name the brand, and it’s there. Her introductory song (Gulabi Aankhein) has a chorus which mentions and features luxury brands like Manolo, Jimmy Choo, Prada, Stella McCartney. Really! Take a look:

And then begins a game of spot-the-brand. Rishi Kapoor, for instance, pops open a Burberry umbrella in the sun, and reads notes from a Louis Vuitton case/ folder. Alia Bhatt totes a Dior bag and an Hermes Birkin. Even the sportswear is sponsored- the football uniforms by Puma and the triathlon clothes by Fusion (a UK brand specialising in triathlon clothing). As for the men in the movie—they are walking-talking Ray-Ban advertisements. 😀

Key Looks

Shanaya is a feminine girl who wears mostly dresses and skirts, sometimes hot shot pants. On a normal day, she carries a Birkin, and brings a Dior bag to her school canteen. The lucky girl also wears Manish Malhotra outfits to a wedding. Her wardrobe is so out of touch with reality that she doesn’t have “hospital” clothes.

Alia’s makeup (done by Mickey Contractor) is only about red lips, and her hair is straightened and slicked back with a cutesy hairband. This lucky young lady has got to wear the best designers and brands, but it’s unfortunate to see her in a uniform look throughout the movie (pun intended).

Rohan (Varun Dhawan) and Abhimanyu (Siddharth Malhotra) are The Dudes At School, so they look good in every frame. Varun plays an aspiring musician, hence quirky prints like Mickey Mouse tshirts and the like are his statement. Siddharth Malhotra is dressed a bit more “serious”. Even so, his character is “poor” enough to be on scholarship, but can afford Quiksilver tshirts, Aviators and designer kurtas. The guys’ buff bods work well for them and are an essential part of their look, since they need to look sexy in their body-hugging sports gear.

Meanwhile, Rishi Kapoor’s gay character wears polka dotted and pink ties with mismatched shirts and blazers with quirky brooches on the lapel (like a koala bear and crystal-encrusted reptile!).

The Coolest School

The uniform of this cool “school” is pretty awesome- you can wear anything you want, as long as you wear the school blazer over it. Manish Malhotra has styled the lead actors while Shiraz Siddique and Archana Walavalkar have worked with the supporting cast.

Being a Karan Johar movie, all characters look good, wear cool clothes and are quite trendy. If I went to such a learning institution, I’d either die of brand envy or spend an hour a day choosing my wardrobe and fixing my hair and makeup. Not to mention I’d end up draining my family’s precious money on clothes. And of course, there wouldn’t be time to study. 😉

While Karan Johar has attempted to make the movie as slick as possible, but the high dose of fashion seems looks almost implausible in real life. So yeah, if you like good-looking movies, Student of the Year is for you. If you like good movies though, then you can bunk this class.

All Pictures Courtesy: Dharma Productions

In Fashion, WIFW SS 2013

WIFW SS 13 Day 2 Recap

Speaking ChicOctober 20, 2012October 20, 2012Leave a comment

Manish Malhotra
Manish Malhotra’s been using a lot of Kashmiri embroidery and chikankari recently, and for this ramp collection, he continued with the latter, associating with the NGO Mijwan. And there were the usual suspects of colours like ivory, creme, burnt orange, dull shades of red, pink and the like. Some great stuff to look at, but not new.

AM:PM
Ankur and Priyanka Modi stuck to a simple colour palette, but with exotic imagery of god-birds, the Mayan maze, and birds of paradise. Exoticism was balanced with elegant fluid silhouettes, though the designer duo could have taken a few more risks.

Anaikka
The designer tried to capture the multiple facets of a woman through garments crafted for specific personalities, character traits and looks. This ranged from the simple feminine charm to the complex mysterious allure. Two key themes in the collection: attention to detail and strong use of monotones.

Dev R Nil
Clever print mixing in dresses and separates comprised this very wearable collection. The colour palette was restricted to mostly nude, taupe, pale lime, and navy blue with sparks of tangerine and fuchsia.

James Ferreira
Moving away from last year’s tie-and-dye, the designer’s new collection features hand painting by textile artist Bhamini Subramaniam and minimal embellishment. Chic and modern, the draped silhouettes were all seen before.

Kavita Bhartia
The “Romanian” influences is not quite apparent, and the headgear was quite disconcerting. The odd-coloured wigs distracted us from the garments, which were quite likable once you saw beyond the wool-hair.

Rajesh Pratap Singh
Rajesh Pratap Singh experimented with new materials (fabrics and otherwise), used tassellation and various drapes for a slightly futuristic look (big shoulders, surface textures).

SCHON by Sakshee Pradhan
Marking the journey of the sparrow, the rich fabrics and an outfit with some embroidery were the only interesting bits about the collection.

Samant Chauhan
Samant Chauhan attempted to create masterpieces worth royalty with Bhagalpuri silks, “assi kalis” and zardozi embroidery. Are all the garments worth royalty? Are they all masterpieces? The answer to both questions is “No”, though some of them are certainly arisotocratic, if not regal.

Surbhi Chawla
Lots of “influences” in the collection (nomadic, tribal, gypsy), but the common thread to bind them all together was missing.

Accessories of the Day
Nathnis (nose accessories) at Sakshee Pradhan.

Quirky statement earrings at Surbhi Chawla.

Customary Bollywood Appearances of the Day
Parineeti Chopra for Manish Malhotra. Maybe she could have tried to carry the outfit a bit more gracefully?

Diana Penty for Sakshee Pradhan- drab, just like her look in Cocktail.

Manoj Bajpai for Samant Chauhan. Can’t miss the royal weapon there!

WTFashion Outfit of the Day
Is it a bird? Is it a garbage can? No, it’s WTFashion! (Spotted at Khushiz).

In 2012, Fashion

PCJ Delhi Couture Week 2012 begins today

Speaking ChicAugust 8, 2012August 8, 2012Leave a comment

Fashion Design Council of India (FDCI)’s PCJ Delhi Couture Week 2012 kicks off this evening in New Delhi with Varun Bahl’s show.

FDCI has unveiled a creative look for the event- one image for each day. Each of these five images highlights tools that help create couture garments- from the mannequin torso to the humble iron. These intricate designs remind me of Indian royalty, and are the result of several brain storming sessions with the FDCI creative committee (David Abraham, Rajesh Pratap Singh, Rohit Bal and Suneet Varma) and the graphic design company– Bombay Design House.

I think it’s a brilliant concept- my favourite images from the series are that of the sewing machine (Day 4 Green) and the clothes hanger (Day 2 Purple).

Meanwhile, I’ve got a wishlist of the shows I’d like to watch:

J J Valaya
Varun Bahl
Anamika Khanna
Manish Arora
Shantanu & Nikhil
Manav Gangwani
Sabyasachi

Yup, fashion at PCJ Delhi Couture Week promises to be stunning!

PCJ Delhi Couture Week is a “By Invitation Only” event by Fashion Design Council of India, held in New Delhi from August 8 to 12, 2012.

In 2012, Bollywood Fashion, Fashion

Bollywood Fashion: Fashion in London Paris New York, Kahaani and Agent Vinod

Speaking ChicApril 5, 2012April 5, 2012Leave a comment

Most Bollywood releases over the past few weeks have been quite unexciting on the fashion front—there have been no “Wow!” fashion moments or interesting looks that get me hooked in the promo itself. Even so, there’s been something noteworthy in some of the movies, so here’s a quick look at the fashion in London Paris New York, Kahaani and Agent Vinod.

London Paris New York

Ali Zafar plays the typical rich brat-cum-stud while Aditi Rao Hydari is the pseudo-bohemian feminist. They meet in the cities in distinctly different looks—from clean shaven to French beard for the guy, and from dishevelled hair to chic bob for her.

Ali Zafar’s look: From funky tshirt to a more refined look with coordinated accessories—loved it!

Aditi Rao’s Hydari’s look: If you’ve seen the movie promo, you’ve seen it all. Interestingly, the makeup stays the same—the lips just morph into various shades of red (darkest in Paris).

What I liked: I absolutely loved Ali Zafar’s style statement in New York. Muffler, jacket and oh, that Hermes belt! Oooh, and I also loved his contrast collar shirt. Take a look:

What I didn’t like: There was much more scope to experiment with Aditi Rao Hydari’s look, besides the hair and makeup. Very ordinary clothes, but maybe that was the point of the character.

Chic Tip: Get Ali Zafar’s shirt at Zara!

Fashion rating: 3.5/5

Kahaani

In a movie like Kahaani, there isn’t much scope for awesome fashion and styling. The costumes are well thought-out and appropriate for Vidya Bagchi’s simplicity- from the night wear (tshirt and pyjamas) to the long cotton dresses that a pregnant NRI woman may wear.

What I liked: The clever yet effortless layering (like a lace slip peeping out under maxi dress), simple unobtrusive prints, and use of high street brands like GAP. Designer Sabyasachi Mukherjee’s signature was all over Vidya Balan.

What I didn’t like: While the clothes in the movie aren’t glam or trendy, it’s because they are not supposed to be. The right costumes help in characterisation after all. So nope, nothing to dislike as such.

Fashion rating: 3.5/5

Agent Vinod

When a blue-blooded actor and his hot girlfriend star in a spy thriller shot across the world, you expect charm, mystique, charisma and dollops of style. Unfortunately didn’t get much of any of those things in Agent Vinod.

What I liked: Couple of Saif Ali Khan’s shirts (I believe some of them are from Arrow). Too bad he spent most of his time looking haggard. You see him at his stylish best(!) in the song Pyaar ki Pungi, which is not saying much at all. Kareena’s carrying some high fashion stuff like a Tod’s bag, and she looked the best in the auction wearing a very low-cut dress, covering up with piles of metallic gold necklaces.

What I didn’t like: While Kareena Kapoor looks great and clothes are quite alright, her wardrobe was inconsistent at best. She was completely unconvincing as a doctor, and her too-wide range of styles failed her character as well. And the bright pink sharara she wears in the mujra song Dil mera muft ka didn’t excite me at all. It was like been there, seen that! Manish Malhotra needs a break.

Fashion rating: 3/5

In 2012, Fashion, WIFW AW 2012

WIFW A/W 2012: What happened on Day 3

Speaking ChicFebruary 20, 2012February 20, 2012Leave a comment

Here’s what I learnt on Day 3 of Wills Lifestyle India Fashion Week Autumn/Winter 2012.

The standard Indian inspirations were still on the ramp

Gujarat and Rajasthan have inspired designers across the world, and continue to do so. Abraham & Thakore harked back to their NID, Ahmedabad days with hand-woven and hand-printed textiles. (Below: Abraham & Thakore)

Meanwhile, at Pallavi Jaipur the designer combined Rajasthan’s colour, kitsch and patchwork with an urban flair. The key accessories were hair pieces.

Europe’s varied culture made for interesting fashion elements

Rajdeep Ranawat’s A Bohemian Legend was influenced by the gypsy way of life with rich fabrics and bohemian influences such as paint splatters, and contoured and colour blocked vines with Chantilly motifs. He used embellishments by Swarovski Elements, chains and leather tassels with pearls and filigree. (Below: Rajdeep Ranawat)

At Pankaj & Nidhi, the 200-year-old Polish folk art of Wycinanki (vih-chee-nan-kee) came to life with hand-cut felt fabrics appliquéd on to fabrics. Note the peacock and floral motifs.

I remembered by school days

Dev r Nil’s interpretation of Alice in Wonderland was a bit different from what I imagined when I read it in school, but the play with optics, butterflies, floating gold fishes and surreal flights was just as enchanting. (I now want to read the book again).

If there’s one thing I didn’t mind about “needlework” in school, it was the cross stitch. It was fun, easy, and I could use lots of colours! So I especially liked Pankaj & Nidhi’s cross stitch on leather, using wool yarn and silk tapes. And the cross stitch was done by punching holes in the leather to form a grid. Mesmerising stuff!

Surface textures excite me

Think splashes of blood red, orange and rust on black and grey texturised fabrics with surface ornamentation. Floral art work compliments sexy cut-outs in modern silhouettes—this happened at Bhanuni by Jyoti Sharma and I enjoyed almost every outfit I saw.

And Anand Bhushan created junkyard fashion by reinterpreting industrial steel, copper and other material through texture, form and colour. For instance, the dresses seemed like moulds or casts. The colours came from the effects of industrial methods like rusting, oxidation and tarnishing. Worth a look!

We all enjoy old wine in a new bottle

Manish Malhotra’s been working with Kashmiri embroidery over the last few seasons (even in movies like Bodyguard), and this season was no different. The intricate thread and zari work from Kashmir featured on borders of churidars, pants and saris, along with matching belts and sleeves. Some of the stuff did look familiar, but his fans would love it.

Showing all posts tagged Manish Malhotra

Bollywood Fashion: Is Alia Bhatt dressed like an IIM student in 2 States?

LFW WF 2013: The best of festive wear

Debarun

Debarun

Manish Malhotra

Manish Malhotra

SVA Couture

SVA Couture

Payal Singhal

Payal Singhal

Ritika by Vivek Kumar

Ritika by Vivek Kumar

Bollywood Fashion : Why Sonakshi Sinha is a fashion flop in OUATIMD, and Akshay Kumar isn’t

Bollywood Fashion: Get Deepika Padukone’s Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani looks in just one step

Chic Guide: 5 things you need this December

Bollywood Fashion: Student of the Year is all about the brands

WIFW SS 13 Day 2 Recap

PCJ Delhi Couture Week 2012 begins today

Bollywood Fashion: Fashion in London Paris New York, Kahaani and Agent Vinod

WIFW A/W 2012: What happened on Day 3