Celebrity designer Manish Malhotra can’t wait to dress up Anarkali and Salim in Firoz Abbas Khan’s Broadway-style musical play based on the cult classic Mughal-e-Azam.
The designer who has designed for numerous celebrities and films, including next week’s release Ae Dil Hai Mushkil, said: “I immediately agreed when I was approached for reviving the play at NCPA (venue of the play). I have never done costumes for theatre and for a musical play. Mughal-e-Azam is an opportunity for me to be associated with characters like Salim, Akbar, Anarkali and Jodha. Theatre is a great experience for me because unlike films where there is a fluctuation of shooting locations, here everything is required together.”
Speaking about the difference between the films and theatre, he said that for theatre he doesn’t want to make heavy costumes so that actors can change quickly.
“I don’t want to make such costumes which look overwhelming. We have to check how the colours will look onstage in particular lighting. Right now, there is a lot of excitement on the set,” he said. “It is a very busy time for me as it is the wedding season. I have just finished two fashion shows and I have lots of orders for weddings, still I am here because of my passion.”
The play will have six songs originally composed by Naushad for Mughal-e-Azam and two new songs.
This project also has award-winning lighting designer David Lander, Emmy award nominee projection designer John Narun, production designer Neil Patel and choreographer Mayuri Upadhya on board.
