Saif Ali Khan's "Laal Kaptaan" Look Is Compared With Jack Sparrow's And This Is What The Designer Has To Say

Saif Ali Khan is currently occupied with promoting Laal Kaptaan, the movie in which he will portray a Naga sadhu. Prior to the release of the film on 18^th October, it has been reported that people are comparing the look of Saif in the film with that of Johnny Depp from his blockbuster franchise, Pirates of the Caribbean.

They think that the dreadlocks and beard look very familiar. To this issue, the stylist of Laal Kaptaan, Darshaan, has disapproved of the claim.

In an interview with DNA, Saif said that the appearance of Johnny Depp never popped up in his mind when his on-screen look was designed.

“No, we hadn’t thought about it at all. The only vision was to create a Naga sadhu. I went to Varanasi where a few of my friends had rare pictures of them. When you say Naga sadhu, the first thing that comes to your mind is the bhabhuti - the white powder, dreadlocks, scruffy beard and red tikka.”

When being offered to be the stylish designer for the film Laal Kaptaan, Darshan Yewalekar was taking charge of designing and finishing the look of Ranveer Singh as Alauddin Khilji in Padmaavat. They offered him to create the looks for not only Saif but also other cast members.

The actor added that filmmaker Navdeep Singh had provided him with a vision and proper brief of what the director wanted. “After the first narration, when I went to meet him, Navdeep gave me 46 folders with a lot of details in it. He was so well-prepared. He was sure of what he wanted and I incorporated his vision,” the designer said.

Darshan was also the person who instructed Saif Ali Khan to grow his beard and hair for the role.

“I prefer using real hair before moulding it. I then add or subtract so that it blends in naturally. Saif was so patient with me. For the look test, it would take 30 minutes because we were not just pasting it, but arranging and aligning the hair and beard.”

In places, the character of Saif does wear a red bandana which adds more to why the comparison happened. Darshan said in his defence that the resemblance is just a coincidence.

“There were a few places where he had to wear a bandana and on the set, we felt it may be close to Johnny Depp’s look. It’s a mere coincidence that the look is similar. But in today’s age even if I design something authentic, it will be found replicated with Hollywood or French cinema. Maybe Depp picked it up from Naga sadhu because it goes well with his character brief — pirates also sport long hair and don’t shave! Honestly, when you see Laal Kaptaan, you’ll see he is a Naga sadhu. Only because he has dreadlocks is he being compared to the Pirates of the Caribbean star.”

The Navdeep Singh’s film is a story centering around a naga sadhu (played by Saif Ali Khan) with a pursuit for revenge. The movie is a co-production product of Colour Yellow Productions and Eros International. Laal Kaptaan is all set to go on floors in the 18^th of this month.

The film also has the feature of other famous actors such as Sonakshi Sinha, Deepak Dobriyal and Manav Vij.