Though producer Bunty Walia has decided to shoot Lamhaa on a set representing Kashmir at Film City, he must shoot at least briefly with Sanjay Dutt in the Valley.
"It's unavoidable. Sanjay plays a military intelligence officer who is a law unto himself in the Valley. Sanju's character is the kind of guy who can do anything. But he doesn't go into the grey zone. We needed a very special look for Sanju. Something that would make him look casual yet professional. A look he has never sported before."
The first thing Sanjay was required to do was grow a thick beard. "Sanju has also coloured his hair. Sanjay has never done this before," says pal and producer Bunty Walia. "He has never cultivated any kind of special look for a role. When he had played a police officer in Mission Kashmir, he had used a moustache for the first time."
Bollywood's numero uno designer for men, Shabina Khan, has been roped in to do Sanjay's look. Shabina Khan is very excited about Sanjay Dutt's new look. "He's come back from his holiday looking so slim and what a stride! Of course his waistline isn't like Sylvester Stallone's. At 63, that guy has a 32- inch waist. I know because I dressed him up for Sajid Nadiadwala's Kambakth Ishq. Sanjay Dutt has come back with a 35-inch waist. He has grown a salt-and-pepper beard. And I've coloured his hair salt-and-pepper for Lamhaa."
Shabina went shopping for Dutt's clothes in New York. "I shopped for him for three days in NY. Every shirt, trousers, jeans, boots, shoes belt, watches and accessory he wears in Lamhaa has been purchased by me in New York. I shopped until Bunty's bank balance dropped. Budget? Bunty never counts pennies."
Shabina feels Dutt has never paid attention to his looks and clothes. "I had done some films with him in the past. Then I got involved with the clothes of Salman and his family. Then there was a 4-year period when I was out of work. It was Bebo (Kareena) who introduced me to Shahid. And my new phase began. I feel changing Sanjay's look was a big challenge. I love it. He's a Greek God in person."
