Gaurav Gupta on designing costume for an Indian superman and bringing Gaudi on to the rampWhen an Indian superman takes on the evils of the world, what should he ideally wear? He can’t be wearing a jumpsuit, or can he? That was what troubled Anaita Shroff Adajaina, the stylist of Goldie Behl’s soon-to-be released film Drona, who finally put the question to designer Gaurav Gupta sometime last year.Intrigued, Gupta began to toy with antique brocades from Varanasi and rich silks, sketched metal embroideries and jewelled headgear. “Since it’s the story of an Indian superhero, we had to have an oriental look. We worked with traditional fabrics, using the reverse side of silks for added sheen and then crafted a metallic embroidery on it that would look like a sheath or armour of sorts,” says Gupta. Adajania was impressed and Gupta’s sketches turned into the costume for Abhishek Bachchan. “He loved the shirts that we had designed for him and even commissioned me to do some for his personal wardrobe,” says Gupta, who had also made the futuristic costume for Priyanka Chopra in Love Story 2050.However, Bachchan has been replaced by Antoni Gaudi in Gupta’s scheme of things now. Busy giving the final touches to his spring-summer collection to be showcased at the Delhi Fashion Week and the Tranoi Fair in Paris, Gupta confesses to being influenced by the maverick artist who led the Spanish Art Nouveau movement. “I was vacationing in Barcelona recently and I was impressed with Gaudi’s work. I took a lot of photos and used them as an inspiration for my collection,” he says.So, Gupta has ditched his usual pastel palette and gone in for brighter tones like teal, red and orange. “I have tried playing up the colours and working on panelling techniques. The effect is quite different from my usual work,” he says. Wait and watch if it is Gaudi or not.
