Did you know that long before A R Rahman won the Oscar, an Indian woman made the country proud by bringing the prestigious award home?
In 1982, Bhanu Athaiya won the Academy Award for costume design for the movie ‘Gandhi’ starring Ben Kingsley.It was only after 26 years of Bhanu holding the coveted distinction that the ‘Slumdog Millionaire’ crew stole the show.
Born on 28 April, 1929, Bhanu hailed from Kolhapur, Maharashtra, and her father Annasaheb was a painter.
Her interest in art started at a young age with her pursuing a degree in fine arts at Mumbai’s Sir JJ School of Art.
Once graduated, she started freelancing as a fashion illustrator and worked for various women’s magazines in Mumbai.
Finding an affinity to the profession of fashion designing, she started to work for Eve’s Weekly magazine’s boutique.
Her designs started to gain popularity and she made her entry into the film industry as a costume designer for Guru Dutt’s 1956 film, C.I.D.
She then went on to design the outfits for every film under the Dutt banner. Her moment of international fame came in 1983 when she won the Oscar along with her British counterpart, John Mollo.
Bhanu’s work in films like Lekin (1991) and Lagaan: Once Upon a Time in India (2001) fetched the talented designer two National awards as well.