Mumbai:Before Bollywood became obsessed with airport minimalism and beige Instagram aesthetics, there was the glorious fashion madness of the 1990s. Neon co-ords, metallic fabrics, impossible sunglasses, printed shirts loud enough to make us cringe. Hindi cinema once dressed like it had absolutely no fear of judgment. And honestly, that’s exactly why people still remember it.
With Hai Jawani Toh Ishq Hona Hai tapping into the spirit of old-school Bollywood entertainers, Pooja Hegde found herself revisiting some of the era’s most iconic fashion moments and she clearly has strong opinions.
“90s Bollywood fashion had personality,” she says instantly. “Nobody was trying to look subtle. Everything was dramatic, colourful and completely committed to its zany world.”
Asked about Salman Khan’s legendary scarf era, immortalised through songs, beach sequences and slow-motion swagger and Pooja laughs. “Only Salman sir could make a scarf feel like it belongs to him,” she says. “That entire phase was iconic because it looked effortless even though it was so stylised. I loved Chunari Chunari and we have paid homage to it in our film.”
But if there’s one 90s Bollywood fashion queen Pooja seems genuinely fascinated by, it’s Karisma Kapoor. “Karisma could wear neon green pants with a bright orange top and somehow still look amazing,” she says. “That confidence made the styling work. Today people would overthink those looks, but back then actors wore everything with full conviction.”
Then comes Govinda who she says was arguably the undisputed king of fearless Bollywood fashion. Oversized printed shirts? Check. Purple-on-yellow combinations? Absolutely. Patterns that should never logically coexist? Constantly.
Pooja grins while reacting to his legendary wardrobe choices. “Govinda fashion was complete madness,” she says. “But that’s what made it unforgettable. There was joy in it. Nobody cared about looking ‘cool’ all the time.”
That word, joy, keeps returning through the conversation, and perhaps that’s the real reason audiences remain nostalgic about 90s Bollywood aesthetics. The fashion wasn’t trying to appear curated. It existed to entertain.
