On the 31st of October every year, the world celebrates the festival of Halloween. Widely observed in the United States, the festival has become popular internationally with many people following it religiously. A quick history lesson—the 31st signified the end of the harvest and start of the gloomy, cold winter season. This was also associated with the return of the dead. Hence, on the eve of November 1st, the ancient Celtic festival of Samhain was celebrated. This involved dressing in scary costumes and lighting a bonfire to scare away the spirits. As a result Hallows Eve, now commonly known as Halloween was born.
Over time this has progressed into a commercial holiday with fun activities of dressing up in costumes, trick-or-treating, carving pumpkins, festive parties and so much more! It is a celebration to get the spooks and pranks on and have a good laugh at the expense of others! We are used to the conventional and western-inspired costumes of witches, Batwoman or princesses. However, it is time to give Halloween an Indian twist, and scare people the desi way! To make this more interesting, we have rounded up some of our favourite satirical characters that would make for the perfect Halloween costume.
Scroll below for 5 Halloween costume ideas with an Indian fusion:
1) Neha From Ghost Stories
Seeing some of our favourite characters in a horror element in Netflix’s Ghost Stories was spooky and fascinating! Sobhita Dhulipala who became largely popular post Made in Heaven plays the character of Neha. Neha is a homemaker who is pregnant and raising her sister’s son who seems to be possessive of her. Sobhita’s character is evidently eccentric and typical of a horror film, we see a weird fascination with dolls, caws of crows and heavy background music. A great idea for a Halloween costume would be to dress as Neha from the short film. Relatively easy to put together: a simple printed saree with quarter sleeves, a grandma-style sweater, Mangalsutra that is visible and a shabby hair bun. Try to look a bit disoriented to really nail the look.
2) Naagin
Mouni Roy‘s depiction of Naagin in the television series was a major success. A lot of people were fond of her character and she gained a fan following from the series. If the western world has a sexy costume of Catwoman for Halloween, India has a sexy snake woman. Emulating Mouni’s sizzling attire will surely get heads turning. From a scary perspective, make a spooky impact with some glaring red eyes, generous use of kohl and thick liner around the eyes. While red lenses might be too much effort, consider playing with some red shadow on your eyelids. For the outfit, rummage through your lehengas till you find a sexy, fitted blouse that you can pair with a dhoti-style skirt. Don’t forget to accessorise with a statement maang tikka and naath for that powerful impact!
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3) Rukshana From Pari
Anushka Sharma‘s Pari is critically known as one of the best horror films in B-town. For the first time, we saw a glamourous actress play the role of a not-so-glamorous ghost. Anushka’s character really manages to send chills downs your spine, keeping you on the edge of your seat throughout. Why look elsewhere for inspiration when our very own star has done a fantastic job in spooking us out. To emulate Rukshana, pay attention to getting the pale make-up look right. Enhance the dark circles, grease your hair and add some bruises and dirt around your neck and head via makeup. For clothes, find your most tattered and worn out kurti and stain it a little to make it mangier. Additionally, if you want to go the extra mile, add some light coloured lenses. That always does the trick to spook up an appearance!
4) Kokila Ben
Viral all over our social media with thousands of memes and TikTok videos is the Rasode Mein Kaun Tha? Main Thi Tum Thi Kaun Tha? rap song. The television series Saath Nibhaana Saathiya along with the characters instantly gained fame following the release of the song. The mother-in-law, Kokila Ben, is seen questioning her daughters-in-law about the gas in the kitchen in a strict and accusive manner. An absolutely witty costume this Halloween would be to go as the trending Kokila Ben. To do so, simply drape a bright coloured saree, pull your hair back in a tight bun, go extra on the kohl around the eyes followed by a long bindi and sindoor. As a result, you will have nailed the Kokila Ben look!
5) Shraddha Kapoor in Stree
The film Stree nails it at the combination of comedy and horror. While you can’t stop laughing at the antics, you are also creeped out by the unclear presence of a “chudail”. The ending leaves the audience wondering as Shraddha Kapoor’s sweet-looking character turns out to be not so innocent. Much like real-life encounters with people, dressing up as a deceiving character for Halloween seems just about scary enough. Long hair in plaits plays a vital part in this look so make sure to style your hair accordingly or get a clip-on. Similar to Shraddha’s mysterious character, the only prominent make-up should be kohl under the eyes. For accessories, add a simple black bindi and nose ring. Moreover, opt for a very desi ghetto such as a simple ghagra choli as it represents what Shraddha’s character in the film asked for. A simple get up but with a mysterious element fit for Halloween!
Who are you going to dress up as this Halloween? Let us know in the comments below.
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