I hope people like my look in 'Eklavya': Amitabh

Mumbai, Jan 21 (IANS) A stickler for perfection that he is known to be, ace filmmaker Vidhu Vinod Chopra put Bollywood icon Amitabh Bachchan through numerous beard and costume trials to get the final look of a typical Rajasthani in "Eklavya - The Royal Guard".

Amitabh, the lead protagonist of the film, confesses he enjoyed himself.

"With Vinod being a perfectionist, he tried his level best to convince me to stop all other work to grow a real beard to get the authentic look.

"Since that wasn't possible, we ended up having several sittings or beard trials to get the right hair colour etc. This was just the beginning," said Amitabh.

After that they moved on to the costumes.

"We went on to turban, then the dress and it went on for months. I eventually realised Vinod has a penchant for perfection and I like that attitude," he said in a release.

"It's wonderful to be told after 35 years that I think you are wrong and this should be done in this manner, and that's what Vinod did and I appreciate that. I hope the look is finally presentable and people like it," he adds.

After widely appreciated films like "Parinda", "1942 - A Love Story" and "Mission Kashmir", Chopra donned the director's cap after a long gap for "Eklavya".

Commenting on his penchant for details, Chopra said: "The look had to be contemporary, and at the same time have a hint of the traditions of India, that's what 'Eklavya' is all about; hence a lot of effort was taken to ensure that Amitabh appeared authentic. He was gracious enough to toil through the numerous beard and costume tests to finally get the right look."

Fashion designer Raghuvendra Rathore, who hails from the royal clan of Jodhpur, created a blue print for the costumes along with Chopra's regular costume designer Subarna Rai Chaudhari.

When Amitabh was shown the sketches, he became so excited that he immediately told his personal trainer that he must exercise harder so that he can resemble the sketch as closely as possible.

The film also stars Sanjay Dutt, Saif Ali Khan, Vidya Balan, Jackie Shroff, Boman Irani, Jimmy Shergill, Raima Sen and Sharmila Tagore. It is slated for release Feb 16.

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Eklavya The Royal Guard