As we get closer to the November 9th release date, it is apparent, seeing the promotional material of Om Shanti Om, that much of the film is set in the 1970s. Deepika Padukone’s character, Shantipriya, is a Bollywood actress of the 1970’s and her costumes are completely of the style of that time.
In fact her whole look is modeled after some of the biggest Bollywood heroines of the 70’s including Rekha, Mumtaz, Helen, and especially Hema Malini. Director Farah Khan says, “Sometimes, the hairstyle was from one, while the costume from another. That’s how I have tried to create the era.” Adding, “Hemaji is my most favorite actress.” In fact Deepika even does a take off on one of Hema Malini’s films, Dream Girl but in OSO it is titled Dreamy Girl.
Deepika loved dressing for her role and said, “What really excited me about the character was that it’s based in the ’70s so I got to experiment with different looks. Combined with Farah Khan’s sensibilities of making bright, colorful, fun films, it was irresistible.”
And even more exciting to us is that we learned that through movie magic, Deepika also gets to dance with some of the heroes of the day, including Rajesh Khanna and Jeetendra!
About her newcomer Farah says, “I was very convinced that I wanted a new girl with Shah Rukh, because this changes the chemistry and the whole movie looks fresh. As it is, so many people keep complaining about same faces and pairing, so I thought this would be nice.
Moreover, Deepika fits her role very well. Her look is very Indian classical, like Hemaji, which I don’t find in today’s girls. They are mostly teeny boppers, wannabe sexy and they don’t have the dignity and poise with which Deepika has carried herself. When I did a look test with Deepika, I realized that she has an old world beauty to her. Today’s girls may look beautiful, but it may be difficult for them to carry a sharara or an amrapali.”
Adding, “We groomed Deepika by putting her in voice training classes, dancing classes and before we started shooting, I made sure she went for Anupam Kher’s three months acting course.”
Speaking of Shah Rukh Khan, the promos say ‘reintroducing Shah Rukh Khan’ and Farah explains, “I really thought that with this new look (referring to SRK’s recent six-pack avatar), he looks almost like a newcomer. He has never been seen like this before. At an age where most actors are putting on their shirts, he has chiseled his body at the age of 42.”
Farah also said that shooting Om Shanti Om was easier than Main Hoon Na, her first feature film. “Om Shanti Om was somehow much simpler to do. Everything was on the sets and was more controlled. I took just two weeks to script the movie and we finished everything in just five months.”
We certainly cannot wait to see the results of the five-month shoot. With the album a smash, all the intriguing promo pictures, and of course the Dard-E Disco video, we are eagerly anticipating November 9th!
