BOLLYWOOD ISHTYLE: Bajirao Mastani's Dazzling Mughal Dresses

Next week sees the awaited release of Sanjay Leela Bhansali's latest luxury epic, 'Bajirao Mastani', featuring Deepika Padukone, Ranveer Singh and Priyanka Chopra, which I'm looking forward to after his last feature, Ram-Leela (with the same trio!)

As always with SLB films, the outfits, jewellery, sets and dances look as amazing as expected, and there's plenty of anticipation for the two main actresses and how they'll play the two Queens in the movie. Set in the 1700s in the Maratha empire, the costumes, which designed by Indian designer Anju Modi, look amazing, and you can really see the designer's creativity.

While I'm not sure what to expect for the storyline of the film itself, I LOVE the costumes and style - there's a range of styles from lenghas, pishwas and nine-yard saris, complete with the luxurious jewellery and details.

One of the first outfits I've seen if from Deepika's song Deewani Mastani, where she is trying to impress the king with his first wife in audience - I loved the take on this outfit which looks elegant yet feminine - especially the turban cap she's wearing which is draped with jewellery.

(This song is apparently the director's tribute to classic movie Mughal-e-Azam's timeless song 'Pyar Kiya to Darna Kya', particularly in the way he emulated the mirrored tiles in the ceiling to show the dancing and swirling of the heroine!)

I love the jewellery she's wearing as well, it could be seen as some as too much jewellery but I think it works - it's balanced out with very simple makeup and hair and a a flowy outfit which balances it out, and it also adds a lot of elegance to the look.

The outfit itself is a 'pishwas' style outfit - a long flowy jacket and dress which is less like an anarkali and more fitted yet flowy - complete with sharara bottoms (two-legged flowy pants) which flow nicely with her dance. I think the colours were lovely too, although it does blend a little too much with the background details rather than standing out.

The other main song I've seen is the duet dance Pinga between the two actresses, which has been compared to Devdas' famous 'Dola re Dola', both which have iconic dance moves between the two actresses in the films. In this song, the women are wearing a traditionally-draped Marathan nine-yard sari, complete with jewellery and flowers in their hair, which looks very well done.

I have to admit though, I was a little less impressed with these outfits - while the style is lovely and suits them, they don't stand out that much and the colours are too similar to each other, there's no iconic styles to them which differentiate them or make them stand out.

I also though that the updo suited Priyanka's face than it suited Deepika, but again the jewellery works well with it and I love the contrast of green bangles added in.

I wasn't able to find many more pictures of the outfits in this film apart from the official images, but I'm sure we'll be able to expect a lot of beautiful pieces once the film is released - below are some of the ones I did manage to find!

I really liked this outfit which I also saw in the trailer worn by Deepika - there's something very regal about it, which also reminds me of the old-style, 'Begum' outfits of the past, which Deepika pulls of well. The outfit is mainly draped shawls and scarves but it looks great and not fussy at all.

Another few outfits I found worn by Deepika are below - again these are soft colours paired with luxurious jewellery and some seriously beautiful embroidery on the outfits - it's all about the detail here and you can see how carefully each look has been put together. I really like how Deepika's face is kept natural - no garish bright lipsticks or colours, just natural glow complimented with gold and pearl jewellery.

Similarly, Priyanka's character is just as ornate, but perhaps a little more sober and mature - she is meant to be the first Queen after all so her outfits are a little less ornate and playful than Deepika's, but the detail is still all there. With her outfits you can see the rich fabrics, the less heavy jewellery which balances her look and makes her look more Queen than bride (in Deepika's case).

I'm liking what I'm seeing so far from this movie, and I'm sure I'll find more - I'll reserve my comments about the actual film until I've seen it, but I'm sure that Bhansali's done an amazing job as always. My favourite outfit so far have been the one from Deepika's song Deewani Mastani purely because it's a funky take on a traditional outfits, but I do love a lot of the saris I've seen as well.

Are you looking forward to this film? Which outfits to you like?

COPYCAT DESIGNS & DRESSES #13: The Green Anarkali Dress by Sonas Couture

I thought I'd post about this dress, which I ordered a long time ago (about 7 or 8 years now!), that I ordered through a friend from her contact in India.

Green and gold are my favourite colour combinations when it comes to Asian clothes, although weirdly enough I don't have many clothes in these colours (my wardrobe just feels like its full of blue dresses right now!)

I originally ordered this dress a few years ago, and found that it was too heavy to wear to my friends' weddings, which is when I wanted to wear it - back then I wore a lot less heavier outfits that I do now and it just felt too dressy for a guest to wear! I then decided to save it for my engagement, should I have one, although in the end I didn't have an official engagement so I never wore it, To be honest, even if I had an engagement, I would probably have gone with something else, perhaps because I felt like I outgrew the style of this outfit.

My opinions of this dress also varied over the year - when I first ordered it I was astounded at how long it was and didn't like it, and packed it away. A few years later I pulled it out (when the fashion of hemlines were long!) and wished it was long - it was too short for me! Eventually I didn't wear it at all and actually ended up selling it online, I didn't think it suited me and thought there was no point in it taking up wardrobe space.

For anyone who wants to know about this outfit and where I ordered it from, I don't have specific details as a friend of mine ordered it from India. I do know that the tailors are called Hafeez and that they were based around Delhi area.

So this is the original design that I sent to India, which I think is from Sonas Couture but I'm not 100% sure, although I do remember this being a popular design which was copied by a lot of online sellers.

Below is the dress that I got, which was actually a pretty decent copy, although one of the reasons I got it so cheap was the work was a lot more cheaper, being mostly french knot threadwork, beading and sequins. The colours were pretty spot on though and the shape of the dress was good, although the bust area wasn't perfect but it looked better on.

Here's a few close ups of the dress - it was pretty full of work and really heavy because there were motifs and a heavy hemline on the front and back. It was also pretty tightly knit, in all the years I had the dress the work didn't really get messed up, surprisingly enough. It also helped that the dress itself was made from georgette rather than the usual chiffon material sellers often use, which meant the fabric was a little sturdy.

I haven't got a picture of myself wearing this outfit because I only tried it on a couple of times, and while it didn't look quite as good as it did on the model in the picture above, it was really flattering. It was pretty slimming on as well, although I do remember wishing I could get it made longer!

THE GOOD: The price - at the time of buying this outfit, I bought another 4 and paid £250 for all of them, so this worked out about £60-70 because it was the heaviest outfit. I may have gotten a discount because there were so many outfits, but there would be no way I'd ever get a dress like this for this price!

THE BAD: The bust, I really wasn't a fan of it. I didn't get a lot of choice at the time of ordering in terms of making alterations, and because it was done through a friend who had to shout down details over the phone to India, I didn't want to confuse or complicate things so I didn't make any changes at all. I don't really tend to go for outfits which emphasise the bust area too much, it did fit pretty well and I always like to make sure something is tailored to my body properly, but I didn't think this was a an amazing shape on me because I'm more straight than curvy in terms of body shapes!

THE UGLY: Squeezing into the outfit a few years after I bought it, and realising I wasn't a size 6 anymore!

OVERALL: I got a pretty decent deal with this outfit, and although I didn't end up wearing it, it was pretty beautiful to me when I got it. I loved (and still love) this colour combination and would still wear them as a formal even now. I remember looking into getting a jamwar or brocade fabric skirt or sharara made for this outfit, so that I would give a really flowy look to the outfit but in the end I didn't because I decided not to keep the outfit.

It's nice to look back at outfits I've had in my wardrobe and see how far fashion has come, and also the idea of ordering from India and Pakistan. Nowadays I do a lot more online shopping and I have more of an experienced eye when looking in the shops and online, although I don't think I did too badly with this one!

DESIGNER MODE: Nomi Ansari's Rang Mahal Collection

Here's some beautiful eye candy for you to start off your weekend, old school glamour, richly mixed colours and beautiful outfits by Pakistani designer Nomi Ansari which hark back to an older era. There's plenty of beauty and regal glamour in these outfits, as well as a mix of traditional style lenghas with tops that have varying hemlines.

I love the detail that goes into Nomi Ansari's work, not just the beautiful colours combines but the richness of the work and the styles of the outfits. I also like the mix of floral embroidery with old-style gota work, some chatta patti style (where strips of coloured fabrics are sewn together like a quilt for a harlequin or stripey effect) as well as the usual metal-work and crystals.

Definitely some inspiration here for mehndi outfits and bridals!

Outfits by Nomi Ansari

Styling by Sabs the Salon

 

Image Source

BRIDE COUTURE: Ali Xeshan's Royal Wedding Shoot

I loved this photoshoot by Ather Shahzad for designer Ali Xeshan's bridal collection, in which he re-created a 'Royal Wedding' in olden-style Lahore, which reads like a storybook (with titles like 'Bride with Family', 'The Royal Wedding at Lahore Fort' and lastly, 'The Rukhsati').

I love, love, love the traditional style of the outfits here, they're luxurious, beautifully embellished and have a overtones of Mughal and classical (not to mention royal!) influences here. I also love the mix of colour and layering of beautiful clothes with beautiful jewellery - which seems to be a signature theme of Xeshan's outfits.

And I have to say, I also love the men's outfits (but I can't say that I know many men who would be willing to get this dressed up for their wedding!)

 

 

All images taken from here

Bollywood Fancy Dress...Ideas!

I'm attending a Bollywood fancy dress party in a few weeks, and have been trying to think of some iconic outfits which I can copy (based on the contents of my wardrobe and what's easy to replicate!)

Here's the top 5 ideas that I've narrowed down to - I'm still deciding on the pros and cons and what I think would work best though.

1. Madhuri in Hum Aapke Hain Kaun
This is nice and easy, a plain green kameez (I'm sure I can find one somewhere), a white skirt (I already have one, although mine has a bit more lace on it!) I'm thinking I may have a harder time finding the jewellery, but anything close enough would work! Personally I'm leaning a bit towards this one because I feel like I can also make it hijab friendly, and it looks pretty simple to copy.

2. Meena Kumari in Pakeezah
This is one of my favourite iconic Bollywood looks, not to mention one of my favourite golden-olden actresses. The key to this look, in my opinion, is the jewellery, it would be fairly easy to weat a simple, plain anarkali suit and jazz it up with jewellery. The half matha-patti would be fairly easy to find as well, as they are quite popular at the moment too. I'm also quite inspired by Dia Mirza's take on this too, although I doubt I'd be able to look as great as she does! If in doubt, otherwise, I can use one of my mum's old dupattas with tinsel along the hem!

3. Madhuri in Devdas
I have a green anarkali which I've always imagined looking like this outfit, it's a similar shade of green and it has a lot of gold work on it, although I'm less keen on this look than the others. I also love the iconic white and red sari worn by the two actresses in this film for the Dola re Dola song, and it would be easy to borrow a sari in these colours, but this idea has already been taken by the fancy dress party's host! Pity, eh?

4. Anything 60's, eyeliner flicks and vintage Bollywood
...like this Asha Parekh look, sari, eyeliner flicks and all, plus some added beehive. Can I also mention that I love Hema Malini back in her heyday? The only downside to this is that there's no one identifiable iconic look, which I would love to go for. Plus side if, all I'd need it a lot of eyeliner, back combing and some tight kameezes!

 

5. Deepika in Om Shanti Om
I think this would be another outfit which would be easy to copy, a hot pink dress (which I have more than one of!) and some beehive hair styling and eyeliner flicks. I think I would also enjoy trying to create this look, and it does allow for some flexibility in terms of jewellery and make-up. I'm not sure how 'famous' or iconic this look is though, or whether it would be instantly recognisable, which is a bit of a drawback.

 

Other ideas are:

• Something from Jodha Akbar, for a Rajasthani look, although this would involve a lot of jewellery
• The black dress worn by Aishwariya in Taal (nice and easy!)
•  The green lachcha worn by Kajol in Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge (although I'm not keen on the lime green, I'd love to wear a lachcha!)
• Kareena's t-shirt and salwar look in Jab We Met (okay, not really!)
• Madhubala's Anarkali in Mughal-E-Azam, quite possibly one of the most iconic costumes in Bollywood history, although I think this outfit would be hard to copy.

I'm still googling/asking around/brainstorming up ideas at the moment, and will most likely go to the shops for a few ideas as well.

In the meantime - what would you dress up as for an iconic Bollywood fancy dress look?

BRIDE COUTURE: Kareena Kapoor in Tarun Tahiliani and Gitanjali jewels

I thought this was quite pretty, since it looked quite traditional rather than the glamorous, over-extravagant photo-shoots I've seen recently. This was for an advert for Indian jewellery brand Gitanjali, a few months ago, and I love both the deep red of the wedding lengha, and the beautiful jewellery. 

I'm not sure whether every bride would like to go for this look, especially if they want to go for a more modern, 'fusion' look, but I think the jewellery here are beautiful statement pieces, and the outfit by Tarun Tahiliani is definitely a lovely one (full image of the outfit is here).

Images from Tarun Tahaliani Facebook group

BOLLYWOOD ISHTYLE: Juhi's Orange Affair in Ishq

I saw one of my favourite golden oldies classic films recently, Ishq, which brought back a lot of good memories (okay the 90s films aren't exactly everyone's golden oldies, but they are for me!), with lots of comedic moments and sing-a-along songs (no one else sang with me, but oh well.)

This outfit stuck out for me (at the obligatory wedding scene) because it looks both traditional and yet would still look today by today's standards. The colour orange is starting to grow on me, but while I wouldn't wear this shade of orange myself, Juhi pulls it off quite well. I love how it's mixed with traditional gold jewellery - the matha-patti headpiece looks nicely done with the pearl-strands of earrings (my mum has a few pairs of these from her younger days!) - and it results in a pretty, almost Mughal-ish look. I also like the fact that the outfit is not heavily embellished with too much detail, it seems to be a dress-shape with trousers and a simple but big dupatta scarf which actually makes for a really nice bridal look.

While not everyone might want to go for this look as inspiration for their wedding day, I think it would make a really interesting mehndi outfit - certainly I'm seeing an increase of orange being worn as mehndi outfits on some girls. What do you think of this outfit?

All images taken from Ishq, which belongs to producers/directors of film

GLAMOROUS ACCESSORIES: Bees' New Jahan Collection

I've been lucky enough to be given a peep into the new Jahan collection by one of my favourite jewellery retailors Bees, which is a new collection released just a few days ago, following on from the store's Mughal Princess collection from last year. I've written before about how much I like their well-crafted pieces, and I haven't changed my opinion since - the new pieces are beautifully regal and have been well thought out - I love the fact that there's a strong Mughal theme to the pieces, as in my opinion, there isn't a lot of jewellery like this which is accessible in the high street.

Here's just a few pieces from their collection which would make great, classic pieces for a bride - they're elegant and striking. I really like the use of pearls too, as this is a growing fashion with bridal jewellery too, and it's not often easy to find jewellery which uses pearls well.

I can certainly see the appeal of Bees' jewellery when they bring out beautiful new collection likes these - my favourite piece is the necklace, it's certainly something I would consider buying for my own Big Day. I like simple, beautiful pieces of jewellery, and these certainly fit the bill - the mix of white and gold is beautiful and one that can never go wrong. I can imagine this being worn for several wedding events - whether it coul be part of a Valima or reception outfit, a Nikah outfit, or even a registry ensemble - it would certainly look great with any!

What do you think of the Jahan collection?