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Calcutta has seen Gavin Miguel walk the ramp seven years ago for a garment export exhibition. He came back recently, but this time as a designer for the finale of Dabur Gulabari Sananda Tilottama 2009, where he dressed seven semi-finalists in shimmering metallic gowns. The same pieces will travel to Munich for a show. The designer from Mumbai in conversation with t2…
How did you cross over from modelling to designing?
My mother is a seamstress so design runs in my family. I wanted to be a pilot when I was in college but then I slipped into modelling before switching to styling for Benetton and finally started my label Gavin Miguel. I have been breathing fabrics ever since I can remember! A year-and-a-half ago I also started a company called 7 Chakras to handle my film and ad assignments. I have three stylists helping me and I want to hire four more. My label Gavin Miguel is about customisation of clothes and bridalwear.
When and how did Bollywood happen?
It was a stroke of luck. One day I got a call from this girl who asked me whether I would design for a film. We met in a café and discussed the story, the script and the look. Then I asked her who the heroine was. She said, “It’s me.” The girl was Antara Mali and the film was Road! I experimented with her look and Ram Gopal Varma gave me freedom and space. I also designed for Naach, which won me the best designer award at Zee Cine Awards. Then I did some work on Dhoom, Dhoom:2 and Drona. I have also worked with Sonam Kapoor for her first L’Oreal campaign and also the new Lux campaign with Priyanka Chopra, Nokia, Lakme, Hero Honda and John Players with Hrithik Roshan.
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What are your recent assignments?
In ads, I am doing John Players with Hrithik, Wills Lifestyle, Pizza Hut with Lara Dutta and Sonam Kapoor’s L’Oreal look. In films, I have designed Tabu’s look in Seasons Greetings. She is playing a diva who has to look stylish right from the time she wakes up till she goes to bed. We’ve done something daring for her, like these pants with high slits that are so not Tabu! Then we did this experimental long wedding gown for Katrina Kaif in Ajab Prem Ki Ghazab Kahani. In Pankh, I have designed a shaded, blue-and-black fringed ensemble for a dramatic song with Bipasha Basu.
You said in a recent interview that Bollywood heroines have become realistic when it comes to style these days…
Yes, they have become sharper and smarter. They understand their body type and skin colour. Earlier they would say “show us 10 options”. Now they definitely know their game. And that helps us designers!
Any recent film you wish you were a part of?
Dostana. The look worked for me big time.
Any Calcutta plans?
Oh yes! There is a new mall coming up called Haute Street on the Bypass. We have done the look for that. I’d love to work more here.
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| Barry O’Brien, Nayanika Chatterjee and Dipannita Sharma Atwal on the ITC The Sonar Calcutta stage at Dabur Gulabari Sananda Tilottama 2009. Picture by Pabitra Das |
Describe these 12 years of being with the 13-year-old Tilottama...
Well, it helps me feel young and stay young year after year! On a serious note, I’d say that it has certainly helped me mature as a person who can perform without a script.
You must have many Tilottama memories…
Yes! First they called me “Barry”, then it became “sir” and now it has become “uncle”!
One year, we did something really crazy. We asked the girls who, according to them, would be the perfect man to marry. One said “someone tall”, so we had this 30-ft tall stilt walker on stage!
Then another year, we got my colleague and now an educator, quizmaster and the force behind TTIS, Biswanath Dasgupta to come in suddenly and start shouting about how pageants are not a part of our culture. The idea was to put the girls in an awkward situation and see how they handled it.
How has the pageant grown over the years?
It’s really grown! In terms of production values, it is very sleek now. The lights, sound and sets have come a long way. Another thing about Tilottama is that it has a heart. I have never come across an event where there is so much warmth. A lot of the other contests are just about competition.
As far as growth of the contestants goes, we can’t even compare the girls who compete now! If I were to own a PR company or a big hotel or an educational institute, all 10 of them would just walk into a job.
The girls we had before were quite nervous. Once one of the participants had asked me, “Can you please not read out my full name or call me by some other name?” When I asked her why, she said her parents did not know that she was participating! Then came the stage where an elder sister or a relative would encourage them to participate. Then it was the mothers. Now it is the full family who is egging on the girl! The dream is now a family dream. It is now a career option and a base.
Who are your favourite Tilottamas over the years?
In some ways it is Celina (Jaitley). We were doing this quiz show on Doordarshan that required a pretty face to balance the not-so-pretty face of the quizmaster! So we approached her a few days after she won Sananda Tilottama. At the show she became more confident and we became quite close. I also like Bipasha Basu, Nicolette Bird and Resshmi Ghosh. I especially have a soft corner for Resshmi because of her complexion, very like Smita Patil.
Who is your favourite co-host?
Dipannita (Sharma Atwal) because it is not easy to co-host with me. I am someone who does not need a teleprompter. Everyone from Mandira Bedi to Rajdeep Sardesai to Harsha Bhogle has asked me: “What! Why don’t you use a teleprompter?” Dipannita was a sport. I told her that I’d be her teleprompter. She trusted me. I’d give her eight out of 10 as a host.
Finally, have you committed any faux pas in all these years?
Heaps of them! Once, off-stage, I walked into the wrong greenroom and the girls weren’t ready. All 20 of them screamed and I just shut my eyes real tight. On another occasion, I desperately needed to go around the corner and there wasn’t much time. So, I just rushed out of the toilet with the bottom part of the kurta still in my mouth and then I suddenly lost my nada (pyjama string). There I was, standing with my churidar down to my knees with less than a few seconds before I went on stage again!
How has the pageant evolved in all these years?
We have reached a certain standard. The quality has improved. There are good designers involved now. This time, everyone said that the girls looked like professionals.
Do you think the quality of contestants is improving every year?
Yes, I think the girls are more clued in. There is a general awareness about what kind of girls the contest is looking for. They are more conscious of fashion, too.
From your modelling days to now… what’s the difference in the new girls?
They’ve got it too easy, so the motivation is a little less. They’ve got everything on a platter. We had to do our own make-up and carry our own shoes. It’s good that things are much more organised now, but if the girls are asked to do anything on their own they’re not capable. I feel we were better equipped.
What’s the most difficult part of grooming the girls?
The background they come from plays a major role in the grooming and getting them to change becomes a difficult task. Often they are not open to change and are scared. If a contestant has long hair and I suggest that we have to cut it short, on many occasions I have heard “no”. Or clothes for that matter; maybe someone is only used to wearing salwar suits!
Which is the one quality you judge a contestant by when you first see her?
I always see what we can really change in a month. If someone is really plump, but has potential, I ask her to lose weight and come back next year because we cannot make her lose 25 kg in a month. Shyness can be overcome. Height is another factor; if we are choosing a short girl, then she has to be photogenic so that she can do press shoots. Someone like Minakshi (Das, a finalist this year) looks ordinary without make-up, but when she has make-up on her face, there is a lot of photo appeal.
I also see how adaptable the girl is to change. I often ask them: “What if I cut off your hair?” If she says “no”, you know she’ll be difficult. Or if someone says: “I thought of participating because I wasn’t doing anything”, it says a lot about her attitude.
What’s that one crucial piece of advice you give them every year?
That this one month has come to you on a platter, use it as much as you can.
The most common misconception...
That it’s all too easy!
Any anecdotes you recall…
The girl who had a ligament tear this year — Sanghamitra Bhattacharya (the second runner-up) — had almost given up hope. So when she went from one round to the next, after every round she would come backstage and say: “I must give you a hug”!
A model or a grooming expert, which role do you enjoy more?
Both! I enjoy modelling. But even this (Tilottama) is very satisfying. When you see your students doing well, it gives you a great high.
What’s it like to have hosted Tilottama for three years?
It’s been an absolute pleasure. The first time I hosted, I was nervous but then it’s been great. It is not a teleprompter-based show and that makes it more fun. So far, I think the 2009 show has been the best. Everything from the stage to the designers had fallen into perfect place and the music was excellent. All the girls had something about them. They were all so well-groomed.
Which part of the pageant do you enjoy most?
The fun that we have on stage, particularly Barry’s jokes! We get along so well. He has been such a big help and a mentor. There is no feeling of competitiveness. We do a technical rehearsal but when it comes to the lines or the way I am going to react on stage, it is totally impromptu.
Which is your top Tilottama moment?
The Ladies-in-Pink contest that Barry started impromptu. Another favourite moment is when the girls write their answers. As the clock goes tick-tock, my heart also goes tick-tock because I know what they are going through from my own experience!
Style seven
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Bipasha Basu:
Has a great personal wardrobe.
Kareena Kapoor:
Cocktail dresses work for her, not skinny jeans. She should try fitted shirts with elephant pants or dungarees. I like to dress the in-between Kareena — the one between the fuller one and the size zero one.
Priyanka Chopra:
Give her a sack and she will make it look gorgeous! She always looks super!
Shah Rukh Khan:
He is the suit man.
Hrithik Roshan:
Clotheshorse.
Sushmita Sen:
Chic and so international.
Sourav Ganguly:
He should try linen trousers, cotton shirts and suits. I have designed for him during a shoot in Amby Valley.
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high 5
Best dressed actor:
Saif Ali Khan. Very relaxed, very easy, even in suits.
Best dressed actress:
Kangana Ranaut. She’s quirky.
Best dressed jodi:
John Abraham and Bipasha Basu.
A star who needs fashion help:
Govinda for the longest time, but some stars are too snooty to ask for help! Also, some actresses go wrong with their red carpet look.
The label you wear a lot:
Paul Smith.
