He has designs on the Khans

He has designs on the Khans

Designer Ashley Rebello, currently styling the look for Salman Khan for his forthcoming film ” Mental, talks about working with several Khans of Bollywood and the quirks of these superstars

Ashley Rebello is a name synonymous with one of Bollywood’s most sellable names — Salman Khan. He is responsible for Salman’s styling and looks in most of his films and in the reality show Bigg Boss. However, not many know that apart from Chulbul Pandey, he has also worked with the other Khans of the industry. While most designers have, over the years, stuck to one particular actor, Ashley can boast of working with all the Khans of Bollywood including Shah Rukh, Salman, Aamir, Saif and Imran.

Ashley lets his work do the talking. Along with Salman’s sister Alvira, he has, over the last few years, given Salman a makeover keeping the actors aesthetics and sensibilities in mind. Those who have worked with him call him, “fun to work with, but extremely focused and dedicated”. We managed to pin him down and let us in on his experience of working with the Khan brigade and share some interesting anecdotes with us.

Talking about working with the Khan brigade Ashley says, “Working with the Khans is never an easy task. Aamir was the first I worked with and I didn’t know what to expect. He is fun, but keeps you on your toes all the time. I remember him as very finicky. He dash all his jeans to be quarter inch tight, and would want 10 white shirts in the same style but in different fabrics for any film. Even today he is the same.”

SRK, on the other hand, is quite the opposite, says the designer. “He is just casual in his approach. I remember during the shooting of Josh, we burnt and ripped his personal jeans to give him a funky look. That became a rage after the release of the film. I also made him wear ear cuffs and lots of jewellery,” he recalls.

Ashley has worked with several actors in their debut films. Imran Khan is one of them. “He never questioned me on the look for his debut film Jaane Tu Ya Jaane Na. Maybe it’s because I took his mother Nuzhat shopping with me. The look had to be young, fun and very contemporary. Imran has this uncanny knack of making everything look cool,” he says.

But, among all the Khans, the coolest is Salman. “Salman’s sister Alvira and me are partners. With every film we re-invent his look from the formal shirts in Dabangg to the Kafia scarf in Ek Tha Tiger. He loves the look we gave him in Bodyguard with his boot cut cargoes and collared t-shirts, tucked in jeans in ankle-length shoes. Apart from his clothes, Salman also loves his shoes and belts,” says Ashley who is also working to design the star for his forthcoming project Mental.