Modern Daro

Actress Pooja Hegde recently shared the first look of her character Chaani from Mohenjo Daro, an upcoming adventure-romance Bollywood film set in the historic ancient city of Mohenjo-daro, during the Indus Valley civilisation. Directed by Ashutosh Gowariker, the film also stars Hrithik Roshan in the lead. In the picture, Pooja is seen decked in bejewelled headgear and a royal blue and red costume designed by April Ferry, known for her work in the Game of Thrones series. The costume is receiving mixed responses; while some are calling it regal, others are dismissing it as ‘over-the-top’ and a ‘poor costume choice’ for a period drama, and not true to the era being depicted.

Fashion designer Anju Modi prefers to give the director the benefit of doubt, and hold her criticism in abeyance. She says, “Mohenjo Daro is such an old civilisation, and it was very raw and primitive in its aesthetics. When we look at the excavations from that site, they are entirely different from what is being depicted in this particular look. But we don’t know the context in which this look appears in the movie. There is a possibility that somebody in that era is imagining some heavenly diva. The whole attire is very modern, and I can’t understand if it is an imaginary or real life character. One can’t criticise the director’s vision without knowing the context of the film, and it is something that one can figure out only after having watched the movie. Going by the name of the film, Mohenjo Daro, one would expect the first look to be very true to the essence of the film and imagine the protagonist to be dressed in something that is very raw, rustic, basic and handmade considering the era it is set in. When we see rustic movies of the yesteryears like Mother India, we get a sense of realism and the era of the Indus Valley civilisation was way before that, so this kind of look At the same time, let’s give the director a benefit of doubt and wait till the real plot and setting of the film are revealed.”

Scoffing at the look, ace designer Ritu Kumar exclaims succinctly, “We are talking of 3000-4000 BC, for heaven’s sake! I think it simply needs no comment.”

If the film is a period drama recreating the era of the Indus valley civilisation, then the look is completely off sync, feels fashion designer Rahul Mishra. He says, “For instance, Aamir Khan for PK was just holding a transistor and was not dressed in a three-piece suit. It was the most important thing about the film’s first look and justified his role as an alien in the film. Maybe even this first look is in sync with the storyline of the film, or maybe with the character that she is portraying. However, if the film is a period film set in Mohenjo Daro, then I am totally surprised to see the character dressed in a chiffon outfit with that dramatic shimmery headgear. There were no fine diamond cuttings or crystals at that point of time! Even Egyptians in those days had just basic clothing made out of linen or hemp fibres. Coarsely woven garments were prevalent during that era. I have studied the history of costume designing but nothing spoke about these kinds of fine garments. But again, we still don’t know if the title of the film has anything to do with its setting. Ancient Indian civilisations were known for good city planning and earthen pots but certainly not for such clothing!”

However, costume designer Niharika Khan, who has styled for The Dirty Picture and Bombay Velvet, finds the look beautiful. “Pooja Hegde is looking regal in that poster. It is beautiful and opulent. I haven’t studied much about that era, but it is a little sexy if it is Bronze Age. It is Sindh, Pakistan and one would expect it to be a little more conservative and not something so modern, but again the director has artistic license to depict whatever he feels is right,” she says.

Comparing the look to what people of the ancient Indian civilisations wore, fashion designer Rina Dhaka asserts, “The figurines discovered from the sites near the Indus Valley civilisation or the sculptures or carvings found in temples and monuments depict human forms in a basic drape or a simple dhoti-like piece of cloth wrapped around the body. Both men and women were really fond of jewellery and adorned ornaments like necklaces, bracelets, earrings or anklets but none of them were so refined or dramatic like the one depicted in this particular look.”