Change of wardrobe for Abhay Deol in 'Aisha'

Mumbai, Aug 1 (IANS) Actress Sonam Kapoor's clothes in the forthcoming film 'Aisha' have become a talking point but a designer points out that a lot of thought has also gone into leading man Abhay Deol's wardrobe.

Abhay looked the perfect cool thief in 'Oye Lucky Lucky Oye' and sported a grunge look in 'Dev D' and there was a deliberate attempt to change the actor's image in 'Aisha', where he'll be seen in his sophisticated best.

'We wanted to change his image in this film and Abhay wanted that too. He has never played the role of an investment banker before; so it was interesting for him to blend in that character,' Kunal Rawal, who has designed for the men in the film, told IANS.

'In 'Aisha', Abhay's character is someone who is fashionable but understated whatever he wears. He is always dressed for the occasion. Even when he is in casuals, his look is very peppy but not loud.

'We have given Abhay suits in mixed subtle colours, suits without belts, vintage tie clips and vintage YSL (Yves Saint Laurent) belts from New York in contrasting colours,' the designer revealed.

Rawal has used a varied palette of colours for Abhay. He has experimented with a lot of maroons, teal, cream, blue and off-white.

So what did he keep in mind while styling Abhay's look in the film?

'We just wanted the clothes to look real yet contemporary, something that a modern banker in today's age in Delhi would wear. We took the essence of the character and made it modern,' Rawal explained.

The designer added that he didn't want to experiment much either.

'We tried to keep it light; if we wanted to add a little zing somewhere, we gave Abhay a double toned tie, which was trendy yet understated,' he said.

Asked if Abhay gave his inputs for his look, Rawal said: 'Abhay was quite involved in the whole process. We had meetings where we threw ideas at each other. He is someone who knows how to carry clothes. He has a lean body and knows exactly what will suit him.'

The designer, however, maintained that it was tougher to style the look for men than women.

'I have realised that styling men is tougher than styling women. There is so much that you can do with women's clothes, but with men you can't do too many variations. You get confined,' said Rawal, who is the creative head of menswear label Provogue for their autumn-winter 2010 collection.

'Aisha', slated to hit screens Aug 6, is based on Jane Austen's novel 'Emma'. The romantic movie is about a high society girl who feels she is naturally gifted in finding love matches.

It features Sonam as the matchmaker and Abhay as the guy who falls for the self-confessed spinster.

The film has been produced by Rhea Kapoor and directed by Rajshree Ojha.