Celebrate The Evolution Of Bollywood Costumes With Sujata Assomull and Aparna Ram

From Madhubala’s famous costume in the song ‘Pyaar Kiya Toh Darna Kya’ in Mughal-e-Azam to Mumtaz’s orange saree in Brahmachari, from Kareena Kapoor Khan’s t-shirt and Patiala salwar ensemble in Jab We Met to Deepika Padukone’s vary opulent wardrobe in Bajirao Mastani – Bollywood has managed to create many iconic fashion moments on screen over the years. And in India, the fashion on the reel has always been the one that sets a trend in motion rather the fashion on ramp. Therefore, ‘100 Iconic Bollywood Costumes’ penned by Sujata Assomull with illustration by Aparna Ram (published by Roli Books) is a perfect fashionable ode to clothes, cinema and culture that we always needed, but just didn’t know.

A tribute to the colorful silver screen looks, the book opens in 50s with a look at Actress Nadira who was among the first names to bring androgynous fashion to the cinema. And well, ends with the outfits of Sonam Kapoor Ahuja and Kareena Kapoor Khan from 2018’s much-loved Veere di Wedding. Since it celebrates how the cinema has influenced and evolved the fashion in India through the years, they connected with many of the leading experts in fashion and film industry (like Anaita Shroff Adjania, Ramesh Sippy, Rajeev Masand, Neeta Lulla, Manish Malhotra and more) for their special comments on the films chosen for the book.

Visuals courtesy Roli Books from their new book 100 Iconic Bollywood Costumes by Sujata Assomull and Aparna Ram

While we believe the beautifully illustrated ‘100 Iconic Bollywood Costumes’ is truly for keeps, we have also put together some of our other favourite fashion illustration based coffee table books:

The Glass Of Fashion by Cecil Beaton
This one’s a true fashion classic, originally published in 1954, that presents Cecil Beaton’s expert and witty vignettes of the personalities who inspired fashion during 40s and 50s. Though an iconic photographer, the book is embedded with more than 150 of Beaton’s line drawings that complement the many profiles included in the book – from Dior to Balenciaga and even his own aunt. It’s a treasure for every new generation fashion enthusiast.

PARIS: Through A Fashion Eye by Megan Hess
By Megan Hess, Paris: Through a Fashion Eye is a celebration of the much-loved and fashionable city of Paris. In the book, Megan’s tour takes you through the best places to eat, shop, sleep, and play for a true fashionista in the French capital while also showcasing where fashion legends like Christian Dior, Coco Chanel, and Karl Lagerfeld worked and played. Whenever talking about Paris, Coco Chanel always comes up. And just like that, Megan Hess also has an illustrated biography of Coca Chanel included in her author profile giving us a very Parisian combination of fashion and travel.

Manolo’s New Shoes: Drawing by Manolo Blahnik
The follow up to ‘Manolo Blahnik Drawings’ – Manolo’s New Shoes presents more than 130of his seductive drawings that have been organized thematically to express his inspirations and passions (Africa, architecture, Botany, films and more). A book for everyone who has admired his work or simply just has a fetish for shoes after all his illustrations are as spell-binding as the shoes themselves.

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