As told to Ankita Chaurasia (MUMBAI MIRROR; September 30, 2019)

It was while I was styling Katrina Kaif for Bang Bang that Hrithik Roshan and I worked together for the first time. Along with Anaita Shroff Adajania, I styled the two in the film. We used floral printed waistcoats which Hrithik hadn’t done before. It was a breezy, cool look and he looked absolutely dishy. Thereafter I began styling him for all his events.

With his Greek God looks, Hrithik is every designer and stylist’s blue-eyed boy. And to top it off, he is always in the best shape so you don’t have to think twice before putting anything on him. You can rest assured if it doesn’t look good on him, chances are it won’t look good on others either.

Hrithik loves trying on new colours and it won’t be an exaggeration to say that colours love him back. Especially green. It makes his eyes pop and goes with his complexion so well, you would think it was criminal for someone to look so good in something so basic.

However, he also loves to be comfortable. Left to his devices, he would be in loungewear all day long. He can roam around the city in the same clothes he woke up in. And much to my dismay, he carries it off with his to-die-for looks. But I get irritated when he stops me from experimenting. All I have to do is pick up some basic tees and pants for him. Irrespective of the brand or the style, if it fits, Hrithik will wear it. But as a stylist, there’s so much more that I can do than shop.

For film promotions, it is difficult to convince him to experiment. He feels that the masses, which comprise his target audience, should be able to relate to him instead of seeing him as an aspirational figure who rocks clothes they wouldn’t dare to think of wearing. We keep going over this all the time. Recently, for a song shoot, I got him to wear a kurta that was a tad different from regular ones he wears. It was a mini victory.

You also have to factor in the fact that Hrithik is a dancer and for him, movement is necessary. He can’t wear anything that’s too stiff or restricting. That’s why his footwear, too, is always basic. Even if I buy high-end brands and cool sneakers, they are either too chunky or blocky for him. As far as accessories go, he keeps it simple with a pair of glares or a watch. For his next, I have given him silver chains, but nothing too heavy.

Hrithik’s personal style is casual. For films, he will wear whatever you give him without batting an eyelid. But for formal events, he sticks to classics, like bespoke suits in tried-and-tested cuts. When the designers and I try to push the boundaries, it usually backfires. He knows his body type and what works for it. If you ask me, for him everything works but try telling him that. So, we usually play it safe. In the past, he has experimented a bit and I’d like to think he will do so again if it’s not too far-fetched. A stylist can always hope!


1. TAKE A BOW: Clean, classic cuts with a bit of sass thrown in makes for good red-carpet dress code. This is our modus operandi for formal events. This electric blue velvet jacket with a bow tie fits the bill

2. FLIGHT APPAREL: Hrithik emphasises comfort over everything else, more so when he is travelling. A pair of black denims with an oversized hoodie cut the fuss while keeping his look tailored

3. ARMY CANDY: If you look closely, this is just a blue jeans-white tee classic look. To elevate it, we paired it with a military-style jacket and a cool pair of glares. Hrithik, of course, took it up a notch with his swagger


4. CONNECTING THE DOTS: For a magazine shoot, we paired a printed white-blue polka-dotted shirt with an oversized denim jacket. For most photoshoots, Hrithik’s smouldering looks do the trick

5. UP HIS SLEEVES: A very basic blue tee paired with uber-comfortable tracks. To make it dressier, since this was for an event, we threw in a printed shirt-jacket. Hrithik folded up the sleeves and we were good to go