Shahid Kapoor's dramatic patriotism as the Rajput king Maharawal Ratan Singh and Ranveer Singh's aggression as Sultan Alauddin Khilji in Padmavati have impressed the audience. And that wouldn't have been possible without the handiwork of leather accessory designers Harsheen Arora, a psychologist by profession, and Vipul Amar, a businessman and an amateur photographer. The duo designed the armour for the period drama's male leads. Harsheen says, “We developed an expertise in leather work which got us noticed. The film's costume designer contacted us saying that filmmaker Sanjay Leela Bhansali was looking for someone to make leather battle armour.“

Previously, the team has also worked on leather outfits for Raabta. Harsheen elaborates, “The warriors are completely different from one another. Maharawal Ratan Singh is an embodiment of love and patriotism, while Khilji personifies conquest and invasion. In Shahid's armour, the blood red depicts honour, love and the eagerness to serve the land. The deep gold signifies courage, generosity and passion. The design elements are inspired by the sun's rays, while the colours of the chest-plate are taken from the hues of the desert.“

Khilji's armour appears more extravagant since the character is known to be self-obsessed. Vipul says, “The leather lions on his shoulders symbolize his strong-headedness. Since lions are associated with noble valour, and we wanted to portray darkness, we engraved the lion heads with crocodile scales, giving them a dark, reptilian feel to bring out Khilji's ferocity.“

The duo employed techniques that were used in the bygone era to treat leather. “We thoroughly researched on the armoury and weaponry of the era. We used historical techniques to create armour like cuir boilli technique, chiselling, in-laying, while making sure they align with today's standards of comfort and weightlessness. We even used needles of the same size that were used in the 13th century,“ explains Vipul. The designers along with a 40-strong team, took eight months to complete the task. Apart from getting the look right, they also had to make the armour functional and comfortable for the actors.

Harsheen says, “Ranveer's armour has 14,000 parts which together make the get-up look great on screen while being functional. When Ranveer asked us how heavy it was, we told him it was just 7.5 kilos. He laughed and said, 'It's lighter than Deepika's lehenga!'“

In order to get the functionality right, the duo consulted an engineer, who advised them on getting the 'robotics' correct so the actors could perform stunts with the armour. Wheeled cabinets were created to house and transport the battle gear which came in handy when the vandals attacked the film's set in Kolhapur.