Zeenat Aman (right) with Sharma (centre) and Kavya Trehan (left)

A sweeping palace bathed in golden-hour light sees a self-made startup queen storm into a room of chandeliers in a sharp pantsuit. At the other end, a prince in a royal bandhgala looks on. When we sat down with Aastha Sharma, that’s the picture she painted for us of The Royals — Netflix India’s newest offering. “Think what happens when royalty is reimagined with a distinctly modern swagger....” she says.

In the buzzy romantic dramedy created by Rangita and Ishita Pritish Nandy, Bhumi Pednekar plays Sophia, a fiery entrepreneur who falls for Ishaan Khatter’s Prince Aviraj. And in the most inspired casting coup of recent times, Zeenat Aman graces the screen as the matriarch, while the ensemble is packed with names like Sakshi Tanwar, Nora Fatehi, and Lisa Misra, among others. Known for dressing red carpet queens like Aishwarya Rai Bachchan and Kiara Advani, Sharma’s work here is character architecture.

“When people hear ‘royals’, they think of heavy silks and stiff embroidery. But I kept asking myself: ‘what would a 2025 Maharani wear to brunch?’” Sharma says.

That’s where the mood board began, mixing heritage with haute couture, and old money with new mood.

“The aim wasn’t to cosplay the monarchy. It was to create aspirational, elevated looks that reflected privilege, power, and personality. I had met the Nandy sisters, Rangita and Ishita, in 2017. I got a call saying that they’re making a show, Four More Shots. It was an instant connection. Rangita has a very strong sense of style, and we are constantly sending each other styles, trends, and how we can incorporate that in what we do next. And just like that, it’s been eight years,” she snaps her fingers.

Strapped for time with only a month to shoot, Sharma says that best creativity happens on a deadline. “I had just had my baby and I wasn’t sure if I wanted to live in Rajasthan for a few months. But the only person who was locked for the show was Zeenat, and how does anyone pass up the opportunity to style the OG?”

When she read Zeenat Aman’s character, she had goosebumps, Sharma says. “I thought that this is it, this is my dream project. I would get to dress the ultimate icon in a way she’s never been styled before. The day she walked in for the presentation was the first time I met her. We showed her the look board, the mood board. She was all in instantly. She looked at me and said, ‘You’re going to style me?’ I nodded. Then she said, ‘You’re going to make me look like this?’ I said yes. And she just went, ‘Bang on.’ At our first fitting, she looked at herself and said, ‘You know, no one has ever made me look this cool.’ I nearly fainted. She does look incredibly cool and gorgeous. It was surreal. She’s Zeenat Aman. I don’t even need to say anything more. And these weren’t easy clothes to carry off. They were layered, textured, opulent. But as Maajisa, she killed it.”

Each principal character had a clear fashion persona. Bhumi’s Sophia is an outsider. She is unapologetically a disruptor. “We leaned into structured cinched blazers, cigarette trousers, and a muted palette. She is today’s girl and I dressed her in power suits.”

Ishaan’s Prince Aviraj, by contrast, is the reluctant royal. “We always do research, but all I got was images of men dressed in the traditional regalia — for the most part, the same stereotypical portrayal. I had to reimagine it. Here was a character who is a Maharaja by birth but he’s never actually lived that life. He’s grown up in New York, far from palaces and protocol. When he returns, he’s not walking in with a crown on his head or wearing those expected brocades or silks. He’d look like someone you’d see in South Bombay today; stylish, effortless, and contemporary. Yet there’s something about him… The royalty is in his bearing. It’s inborn. We did multiple trials to arrive at that look. There’s a transformation arc in the show, emotionally and aesthetically, and it reflects in his wardrobe too. It was a team effort. Rangita, Ishaan, the rest of us all shaped Aviraj together.”

The show’s creators allowed Sharma the room to design with depth. “When I found out the shoot was happening in Jaipur, I thought, ‘Half my job is already done!’ Jaipur has some of the finest jewellers, people with the craftsmanship we needed for this world. In a show like this, jewellery is everything. These characters are royalty. Even if they aren’t in elaborate clothes all the time, their jewellery needs to speak for their lineage. It has to be exquisite. So I brought Amrapali, Gem Palace, and Rambhajo Jewellers on board. These three were absolute saviours. Because I’ve been in this industry for so many years, I simply picked up the phone and said, ‘Guys, I really need your support on this one.’ And everyone came through wholeheartedly. From Falguni and Shane Peacock to Abu Jani and Sandeep Khosla, they all said yes instantly. I just had to call and remind them, ‘We’ve worked together for so long now I need your real backing.’ And they showed up for me. The styling on this show is massive, but somehow, everything came together beautifully. This show let us have fun. We weren’t restricted by realism. We were creating a fantasy with roots in India’s royal past.”

Of course, comparisons were inevitable. A commoner entering a palace as a misfit, and challenging legacy? Sonam Kapoor and Fawad Khan’s Khoobsurat (2014) walked that line. But Sharma insists this series is painting a wholly different picture.

“Khoobsurat was a fairy tale. The Royals is a satire dressed as a romance.  Moreover, that film is over 10 years old. Royalty, like everything else, has seen a sea of change ever since...”

For Sharma, The Royals is an experience of a lifetime. And who gets to be royal in 2025? “Anyone who walks into a room and owns it,” she smiles.

Hope it’s crown-worthy!

It’s always exciting to see a Vidya Balan movie. But Neeyat goes beyond that by bringing together a strong ensemble cast comprising Ram Kapoor, Shahana Goswami, Rahul Bose and Neeraj Kabi, among others. While having a diverse group of actors is a joy for any director, it poses a challenge to a stylist.

Seasoned stylist Aastha Sharma says she began by cracking the look of Balan, who plays a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) officer in the Anu Menon-helmed murder mystery. “Vidya Balan has only one costume throughout the film. So, it had to be perfect and utilitarian. Sweater, a hood, gloves, and layers—they all played a part in [bringing the look together],” she states.

It can be daunting to etch out distinct avatars for each character in an ensemble drama, but the writing aided Sharma.

“Neeyat was character-based when it came to designing costumes. Everyone had their own backstory, so their looks were decided keeping that in mind. Everyone except Vidya had two costume changes—one is a day outfit where everyone arrives at the bash, and then a party outfit for the night.”

While the leading lady’s no-nonsense character gave the stylist little to play with, she made up for it by running wild with Kapoor’s looks.

“Ram Kapoor had to be the flamboyant, rich, over-the-top king of his castle. We played with textures by using brocade in his tuxedo. His accessories were also on point,” elaborates Sharma, adding that the director’s clear vision made her job easier.

A 2018 image of Deepika Padukone in a pale salmon knit dress and jacket at the Mumbai international airport, leaving for her wedding celebrations. Pics/Getty Images

Some amble, some bolt, some dodge. Some actors never fail to sparkle and shine. These are celebrities being papped at the airport. Malaika Arora recently flew in from the Maldives wearing a Gucci blazer casually thrown over an athleisure sports bustier; beau Arjun Kapoor in an all-black ensemble complete with a Prada backpack. Sara Ali Khan breezes in and out more often than not in roomy kurta-salwars, while Shraddha Kapoor struts — quite like the boss — in boots and cropped jackets. It’s a post-pandemic fashion moment: a win-win all over again for brand placements and stylists.

As cases remain under control and air travel opens up, celebrity airport style spotting is refinding its mojo. Through 20 months of the pandemic, airports sat bare, celebs cooped up in their homes, stylists out of work.

Viral Bhayani, founder of a photo agency called Bollywood Pap, has tracked the famous over a two-decade-long career. “I’m not star-struck,” he says matter-of-factly. “Capturing celebs at the airport is work, it’s our dal-roti. I have to support my own family and those of my staff. Everyone has responsibilities, EMIs to pay.”

The airport is not exactly a glossy ramp, it lacks the glow of a red carpet event. So, how and when did the arrival and departure gates begin to rival coveted runways? “Marilyn Monroe was one of the first glamorous jetsetters; she taught us that air travel was nothing if not a photo opportunity. I remember this image of her leaning against a United Airline aircraft in stilettos,” says designer Narendra Kumar. “Air travel was not always affordable, so, it was celebrities who became icons of glamour and travel,” he adds.

That was then. The idea of travel fashion truly began to firm up when mass travel took off in the late 1990s. But it wasn’t until the mid-noughties (a decade from 2000 to 2009) that airports became a crucible for celebrity content. The Indian editions of People and Vogue, and celebrity chatter blogging sites like High Heel Confidential (HHC) and Miss Malini had launched. Entertainment-photographers flocked to this promised land. Bhayani was there too.

This was a big change from earlier when he had had no reason to wait hours at the airport, “unless Michael Jackson was scheduled to show up in India”. And then, Priyanka Chopra took charge. “She leveraged the star power of celebrities by starting the airport look trend in India,” Bhayani thinks.

“She was also the first to get a styling team in order; sometimes, it was they in fact, who tipped us off about her arrival and departure details. Dum hai bhai, she is an astute strategist.”

Soon, Chopra’s celebrity colleagues followed.

“Blogs like HHC and other digital publications watched and dissected celebrity airport looks, their clothes, bags, shoes… it became a competition. It opened up an untapped market for stylists, reps, brands… sab ki dukaan chalu ho gayi,” Bhayani explains.

Around this time, actors also began frequently travelling overseas for awards, events and shoots. “And the presence of the paparazzi made them conscious about their public image, they could no longer get away with wearing what they liked,” says Aastha Sharma, a celebrity stylist and founder of Wardrobist and The Wedding Style Project.

Then, Instagram arrived. Introduced in October 2010, the photo-sharing mobile app effectively rewired celebrity culture for the better, and in some cases, for much, much worse. The layout of the social media platform, a steady stream of same-size images, turned into an equaliser of sorts—your holiday selfie found the same grid space that Sonam Kapoor’s did. With speedy reach and the like and comment option, it marked the rise of Instagram influencers, birthing terms like “trending” while also giving more power to trolls. “The platform upped the stakes of the airport look. Some celebrities went crazy with OTT dressing; thankfully, everyone has calmed down in the pandemic,” laughs Sharma.

The core Instagram demographic is the first generation of millennials and Generation Z for whom being online is a default option rather than something they actively do. This, Kumar believes, pushed the focus from reel to real; loosening up fashion and kicking off athleisure wear in a historic way. The not-so-famous were now also taking a selfie at the airport, self-styled in a trench coat and booties with jogger pants, and posting it on their social media handles, #airportlook announcing their arrival.

Kumar says while the naive believe that it’s the stars that pull out what they wear on flight, it’s usually a team of stylists who put together the “full look” basically tailored for in-flight purposes. Sharma, a stylist for Aishwarya Rai, Kajol, Disha Patni and Neha Dhupia, says that a stylist’s job is not only to dress the stars for special occasions, but also take care of their overall image.

And it is designers who have much to gain. Indian athleisure labels like Kumar’s FKNS compete with younger names like Kanika Goyal; her ’80s and ’90s-groomed denim outfits regularly endorsed by Deepika Padukone. “Where else can you get this kind of reach and publicity?” Kumar asks.

While technology allowed celebrities to rewrite their codes to correspond with their own ambitions, it also peeled away the lustre of exclusivity, slowly moving focus off of the paparazzi. “It’s not the same. Stars now prefer hiring a team of photographers and makeup artists to shoot their airport appearances. These images are often heavily stylised and corrected. Where is the spontaneity?”

That Instagram is thrusting short videos or Reels is yet another buzz kill. Bhayani, a self-confessed “social media keeda”, though, is in no mood to crib. He serves his celebrity airport looks in bite-size videos with music. “It’s content, it’s entertainment,” he reasons. Which explains why he is now thinking laterally in the language of TRPs. “Unless you don’t get trolled, there is no engagement. People come to Instagram to be entertained while watching stars at the airport. Who wants to be at a fashion week anymore?”