Did Salman Khan's Sister Alvira Inspire Yami Gautam's Look In 'Haq'? Costume Designer Ashley Rebello Spills the Beans

Haq is a film close to costume designer Ashley Rebello's heart. He loved creating the outfits as much as he enjoyed watching the cast wear it on screen. In an interview with FPJ, he speaks about designing costumes for Haq inspired by the 70s, and how he drew inspiration from people he knew like his mom Greta, his father and also Salman Khan's sister Alvira Khan Agnihotri.

Designing costumes for Haq, inspired by the 70s

Explaining the process behind the iconic costumes he says, "It begins with a story that translates into the storyboard. That's followed with the sketches and fabric samples. I had a vision board and put things together to make them look like the characters.

"I even tried and used AI to place the actors' faces onto the sketches to see what it's actually going to look like in the movie. There was a photo session, and once the samples were ready, we went with the looks. Be it Emraan Hashmi, Yami Gautam, Vartika Singh or Sheeba Chaddha, for everyone in Haq there was a look test," he adds. In the movie, Ashley made Yami repeat several outfits for a realistic touch. "I think she had just two pairs of chappals throughout the film," he reveals.

Behind-the-scenes: Yami applies mehendi

Incorporating his mother's elegance into Yami's outfits

Few of Yami's outfits were stitched in Mumbai, but most of them were made in Lucknow itself. Emraan's kurtas were stitched in Mumbai, because it was easier that way as trials and fittings needed to be done as well. "But we always had a tailor on set for alterations. I kept telling the master to stick to the princess cut and katori blouses. For Emraan, the kurtas were kept short and not long like they are worn today. There were gota, brocade and crochet trimmings in the outfits."

"Choosing Yami's look was based on women I know and have met like Alvira Khan Agnihotri. I saw how she carried her clothes right from her teenage days. The dupattas are worn with ease and not pinned anywhere. I love the little chaand-sitaras (that's what sequence are called). I incorporated all that, along with my mother's elegance. They way she used to wear her saris and pearls. Also, the way my father would dress. He never wore bell-bottoms and hence I didn't give Emraan those pants. In the 70s and 80s, a lot of people wore narrow fits and only the younger lot wore bell-bottoms," says Ashley.

Yami paints a pretty picture in a pink sari

Designing the pink sari for Yami in Haq

"I kept Gayatri Devi and my mother in mind while designing the pink sari. The director was clear he wanted a lovely, pretty pink. Getting a pink in the market now meant it would look like every other pink. So, I got it dyed in a shade of dusty pink rose, and it gave off an old-world charm. Yami looked stunning and the pearls she is wearing belong to my mom. They are Chanel pearls from my mom's wardrobe."

Yami's outfits in the first half of Haq are more about pastels, soft pretty shades of lavender, pinks and peaches. But they were all dyed. "You don't get that colour anywhere in the market. Even the wedding outfit was dyed. With Emraan and Vartika, we stitched all their outfits. Nothing is readymade," shares Ashley.

"As of Yami's second half in the movie, I gave her warmer tones of greys and blacks with Kashmiri shawls to give a sense of vulnerability."

Ashley Rebello

Styling Aishwarya Rai Bachchan for Miss World

"As far as the saris are concerned for Aishwarya during Miss World, I had dyed many, many colours — almost 25-30 colours with matching bangles, bindis and contrasting blouses. At that time, I was working on the film Meenaxi Tailor 3 Cities with the great painter MF Husain, who also directed the movie, and I was inspired by what he made Tabu wear, which I had only done for the film. There was ink blue and red, and he made her wear the ghagra-cholis with contract blouses. I got inspired by that and dressed Aishwarya in contrasting blouses with self-coloured saris."

Most expensive outfit ever designed

"I wouldn't say it is the most expensive outfits, because I'm really not sure, but it was for Hum Saath Saath Hain, Karishma Kapoor's look for Maiyaa Yashoda. It was the most expensive outfits then. It was stunning and gorgeous. The fabrics and embroidery were so beautiful," he explains.

Dressing stars back in the 90s vs now: What's different?

The one thing Ashley really misses is the camaraderie that people shared on the sets. Gone are the times when everyone would sit down for lunch and eat together. "Back then, there was no van system," he reveals.

"We would chat and talk about films. There were such interesting conversations that people wanted to be on the set all the time.

"Today, everyone wants to just wrap up their work and leave. There is no sense of being one big family on the sets. Each individual comes, does their work and goes."

Fondly remembering the time he did Kareeb with Vidhu Vinod Chopra, Ashley says, "We all stayed at a monastery, be it the leading actors, camera people, costume designer or director; we all stayed together in one place. There were no fancy hotels or meals. We ate the same food and that experience was so wonderful."

Fashion trends Ashley started

Some of the fashion trends Ashley can proudly take credit for are the Chandni Bar parties. That was also around the time theme parties on Page 3 got popular. In an Instagram post, Ashley candidly reveals that sourcing for the film was rather a challenge. "I remember driving through Kamathipura (Mumbai's red-light area) and the girls started stoning my car but survived it all and came out victorious!"

"In movies like Jo Jeeta Wohi Sikandar, the salwar pants with men's shirts and scarves were iconic. Even Salman Khan's kafiya or the checked shirts with denim trimmings were trendsetters."

For Ashley, the Bollywood actor with the best wardrobe has to be Saif Ali Khan. "He is so elegant, so smart and outstandingly classic."

The costume designer would also rate Saif as a trendsetter. He loves Deepika Padukone for her style and dress sense. "She really sets trends."

The relationship between a costume designer and actor

When quizzed about the most crucial element when it comes to designing costumes for actors, Ashley says, "Whether it's Tabu or Aamir Khan, Yami or Emraan, I feel if they trust you, your work is done. If they don't, I don't think you should work with them.

"Trust is very important. Actors need to be selfless and give themselves up to you in terms of how they are going to look in a film. That is what keeps their characters alive. It's crucial for actors to wear the right kind of clothes and not dress in something they'd wear in real-life or what's in fashion then. It should be what the trend is going to be six months or a year down the line."

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