When Parineeti Chopra pulled off a de-glam lead role in Hasee To Phasee, the audience stood up in applause. But with Alia Bhatt's nude make-up in Highway and most recently Kangna Ranaut downplaying her looks in Queen, the audience is wondering if this de-glam, soft make-up trend has taken Bollywood in. High time, we are treated to performance and not just glamour, filmmakers tell Deebashree Mohanty
About time we appreciated an actress because of the way she acts and not for her looks hot. Not every cinema is about glamour. Similarly, not every role demands the actor to wear clothes straight out of the ramp. Emerging cinema is all about saluting the performer behind every actor. As filmmakers, we believe that if one is talented than looks become secondary. Kajol is a perfect example. She is very attractive and has got the best expressions in town but she won’t fit the bill of a sexy seductress with a size zero figure. Yet she was the best actor of her time. Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Manoj Bajpai, Irrfan are all fantastic actors who may not be hot hero material,” veteran film-maker Mahesh Bhatt points out.
He is elated with the success of Highway, a film close to his heart for obvious reasons. “I was more nervous than Alia about this film. But she has done a fabulous job. The role didn’t demand an uber sexy look with singing and dancing. And Alia didn’t even miss it. She wanted a no-fuss role and Imtiaz Ali gave her that on a platter,” Bhatt who also enjoyed Parineeti’s de-glam avatar in Hasee To Phasee (HTP) opines. For him, it’s a challenge for young actors to shed their good-look image for a film that may not agree with the masses.
“I think, the audience also needs a break from the monotony of pretty young things scorching up the screen. With the success of Queen, Highway and HTP, it’s clear that the de-glam look doesn’t work only for art cinema. The three films were commercial hits making over `50 crore at the box office,” trade analyst Taran Adarsh says.
According to him, there are many popular producers who are putting their money on a film with substance and a character role for the actress. “It’s going to be a treat to watch Priyanka Chopra pull off a completely nude make-up in a fully commercial film. That will bring out the best in every actress,” he says.
For director Imitiaz Ali, clothes and make-up take a back seat if the role is demanding and if the actor does complete justice. Of course, screen-time makes a lot of difference too. “Highway, Queen etc were demanding roles for the heroine. It was the actress who had the centrestage from start to finish. That’s why these new-day actors have decided to experiment with their looks so early in their career. Given the stiff competition, these actors are willing to do everything that’s different and will land them with a golden ticket,” Bhatt says.
While Parineeti and Kangna found it easy to not go for many sessions of wardrobe testing, it was a big task for Alia Bhatt who was required to go through many classes on how to dress clever and keep her skin moisturised in cold climes. “It was nice to be sporting normal T-shirt and jeans for most part of the film. But it was the scant make-up that was tough. I’ve rough skin which needs to be taken care of at every point. For Highway, my skin has taken a real beating. Because it was cold and dry, I kept hydrating my face by splashing water. That made it worse. If there were layers of make-up at least my skin would have suffered less,” Bhatt says jokingly. She enjoyed the look as much as her performance in the film.
But her mother and friends could not believe that a spunky actor who wore short skirts and figure hugging pants in her debut was willing to do a role that needed her to dress shabbily. “Imitiaz wanted the unkempt look as I was kidnapped. I liked the whole casual attire and thought of giving it a shot. At first I was a little scared about whether this film will tamper with my glamour quotient but the response I’ve got is fantastic,” she tells you.