Book excerpt: Bhanu Athaiya is the revered doyenne of Indian costume designers...For the benefit of future generations of filmmakers, film lovers and designers, it is important to document the landmark work done by someone with such knowledge, vision and passion. To beloved Bhanu I send my heartfelt congratulations on this splendid book. - From the Foreword by Lord Richard AttenboroughBhanu Athaiya began her career in costume design in 1953. Over the next 56 years she built an extraordinary body of work that defined the aesthetics of costume design in Hindi cinema. Name any iconic look and Bhanu was behind it, whether it was Waheeda Rehman in Guide, Mumtaz in Brahmachari or Zeenat Aman in Satyam Shivam Sundaram. She has to her credit an amazing repertoire of 130 films and has worked with every director and producer of consequence, including Raj Kapoor, Guru Dutt, B.R. Chopra, Yash Chopra, F.C. Mehra, Sunil Dutt, Dev Anand, Randhir Kapoor and Ashutosh Gowariker. In this book, Bhanu recounts the eventful story of her life and her deep passion for creativity in design. She takes you through a fascinating journey, beginning with the classic look of the black and white era, moving on to the age of Technicolor typified by box-office hits like Sangam, Ganga Jumna and Waqt, and then to her more contemporary work in Lagaan and Swades. The book culminates in the story of the Oscar for the costume design of Gandhi-the first such distinction won by an Indian.This is a classic work on the pioneering vision of a person who shaped the landmarks of Indian film costumes, set the fashion trend of the 1960s and 70s, and won Indian cinema the highest acclaim in the international arena.