HIMMATWALA

era: 1980s

the setting: ‘The ’80s are back!’ screams out the promo. Sajid Khan’s remake of the 1983 blockbuster Himmatwala, releasing on March 29, has Ajay Devgn slipping into Jeetendra’s white pants even as debutant Tamannaah tries to recreate Sridevi’s jhatkas and matkas. Sajid is a fan-atic of the K. Raghavendra Rao-directed original. “It’s my favourite film from childhood. I think I saw it 36 times in the theatre. I always wanted to retell the story in my style with more action, humour and drama,” he told t2 recently. And he has stayed true to the flashback not only in look and feel — Devgn takes on a tiger with bare hands — but also included two of the film’s original tracks, Naino mein sapna and Taki taki. The masterstroke? Making Amit Kumar recreate dad Kishore Kumar’s magic in Naino mein sapna.

the STYLE: The promos have shown Devgn in flared pants and prominent sideburns with Tamannaah dressed in chiffon saris and the famous ‘apsara’ costume from Naino mein sapna.

WATCH OUT FOR: Sonakshi Sinha (right) channelling Parveen Babi in Shaan — gold dress to glittery hairband — in the disco-style number Thank God it’s Friday.

GUNDAY

era: 1971 to 1988

the setting: Priyanka Chopra, Arjun Kapoor and Ranveer Singh have been camping in the city for a month for the made-in-Calcutta Yash Raj film that traces the rise of two wagon breakers-turned-dons

the STYLE: Priyanka has been making quite a style statement — polka dots to bare back, taant saris to bell-bottoms as she criss-crosses Calcutta.

Watch out for: The recreation of the Calcutta of the ’70s and ’80 — Dalhousie to Dakshineswar. (Psst: YRF chose Calcutta because this is the only city in India that hasn’t changed much since then!)

BHAAG MILKHA BHAAG

era: 1947 and after

the setting: Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra’s biopic on Flying Sikh Milkha Singh — played by Farhan Akhtar — has been grabbing eyeballs ever since the teasers hit theatres late last year. The film captures the butchering of the champion athlete’s family during the Partition and his phenomenal rise to world fame.

Watch out for: Farhan’s rippling fab abs. Can’t wait for July 12!

PEEKAY

While it’s been all hush-hush so far, pictures filtering out of the Peekay sets in Rajasthan reveal that the Rajkumar Hirani film could possibly be set in the 1970s. Take a look at this picture of Aamir Khan in drainpipe pants and tight shirt and clutching a tape recorder — it does scream out the ’70s. Co-starring Anushka Sharma and Sanjay Dutt, Aamir’s second film with Hirani, after 3 Idiots , hits screens in early 2014.

Watch out for: Aamir Khan, Aamir Khan and Aamir Khan.

DAVID

era: 1975

the setting:

One-third of Bejoy Nambiar’s February film about three men across different timelines bound together by a common name was set in London of 1975. The Shaitan maker not only made stylist Ameira Punvani dress his principal characters — Neil Nitin Mukesh to Monica Dogra, Milind Soman to Neil Bhoopalam — in clothes that screamed the ’70s, he took the detailing a notch higher shooting the segment in black-and-white.

the STYLE: “I used stripes. The kind of shirts that I have given Neil have long, pointed collars. Some of them had dog collars — a long collar but rounded at the edges. We made him leather jackets, bell-bottoms with 26-inch flare,” Punvani had told t2.

What we liked (better than the film itself!): Neil’s 70s-style handlebar moustache — ala George Harrison — and the film’s Godfather look and feel.

ONCE UPON A TIME IN MUMBAAI AGAIN

era: 1970s

the setting: In 2010, Once Upon A Time In Mumbaai took us into the

super-entertaining era of romance, smuggling, cabaret and mafia wars. This July, its sequel will once again recreate the ’70s with Akshay Kumar as a young Dawood Ibrahim, and Sonakshi Sinha-Imran Khan for company.

the STYLE: The film’s launch a year-and-a-half ago had Akshay turn up in white bell-bottoms and checked shirt. The first-look poster has the Khiladi in a sharp suit and a shirt with dog collars and Imran dressed in a Pathan suit.

WATCH OUT FOR: Mumbai, just the way it walked and talked in the ’70s and ’80s.

SPECIAL 26

era: 1980s

the setting: Neeraj Pandey’s smart thriller stood out for its razor-sharp performances, but more so for the detailing of the period in which it was set. From white Ambassadors to rundown Lambrettas, to clips of Doordarshan of the ’80s, the con-job film was a true blast from the past.

the STYLE: The film recreated India then, complete with Connaught Place pasted with Only Vimal ads, romantic meetings at Bandra bus stops, hotel lobbies made of marble and light-blue Maruti 800s.

What we liked: The Gold Spot and Thrill hoardings. Ooh, nostalgia!