One has often heard of off-screen rivalry between Karisma Kapoor and Raveena Tandon . Over the years, even Aamir Khan and Raveena have spoken about how the lead actors struggled to get along on set. Once Farah Khan had revealed how the two actresses were fighting and pulling each other's wigs while shooting for a song. Now, costume designer Ashley Rebello has shed fresh light on how this rivalry extended to their on-screen appearances, particularly their costumes.
Rebello, who had earlier worked with Aamir Khan on ' Jo Jeeta Wohi Sikandar ', recalled how he landed the opportunity to design for ' Andaz Apna Apna '. He shared that after his previous project, he had expected more offers, but when that didn’t happen, he briefly shifted to production work. During an ad shoot with Raveena, he stepped in to fix a last-minute wardrobe issue after her designer failed to turn up.
“I went to Raveena and asked what the issue was with her outfit. I told her I would fix it, and I delivered the corrected outfit on time. After trying it, she said, ‘My God, this is amazing. Did you do this?’ She asked me what I do, and I told her I am a designer and that I had worked on Jo Jeeta Wohi Sikandar. She said, ‘Oh, you are that Ashley Rebello?’ I said yes. She then asked why I wasn’t doing more films. I told her no one was offering me work. Raveena told me, ‘Ashley, don’t wait for people to give you work, ask for it.’ So I asked her if she would give me work, and she said, of course. She called me home and told me she was starting a new film. That film was Andaz Apna Apna,” he said on a podcast with Avinash Tripathi.
He went on to explain that the competition between the actresses even influenced how they styled themselves on screen, especially in the song ‘Yeh Raat Aur Yeh Doori’.
“Raveena told me we had to wear nighties for the song, but we needed to make them look different. I watch a lot of English films, so I wanted to bring that aesthetic into Hindi cinema. I added feathers and fur to her nighties. The director loved it and said it looked beautiful and could become a trend. There were three nighties in the same song, and we made each one better than the other.”
Rebello also revealed how closely Karisma’s team kept tabs on Raveena’s looks during the shoot.
“At that time, Karisma would often send someone from her team to see what Raveena’s costumes looked like, who was designing them and what exactly was being made. She would then tell her own stylist to take note of it. Raveena looked fabulous in the film. I didn’t know then that I would go on to work with Karisma in so many films later.”
The strained dynamic between the cast has been acknowledged multiple times over the years. Aamir Khan once described the shoot as chaotic due to clashing schedules and interpersonal tensions.
“It was a lovely time that we had; it was also a tough time because I was the only actor who used to come on time. Nobody else would. Back then, Raveena and Karisma also had some issues, they didn’t get along. When Raveena came, Karisma would leave, and vice versa. I used to wonder how the film would ever get completed since we just couldn’t shoot together. The film was ultimately made with great difficulty,” he said during India Today Conclave in 2025. Raveena Tandon herself admitted that despite the friction, the experience was memorable.
“It was fun because while we were shooting, none of us were speaking to each other. Everyone had their own fights going on. Aamir and Salman weren’t talking to each other. Karisma and I weren’t talking, and neither were Salman and Rajkumar Santoshi. I don’t know how the film got made. But it shows we are damn good actors.” She also shared how Salman Khan and Aamir Khan attempted to reconcile the two actresses during the climax sequence.
He further added, “The boys tried to bring Karisma and me together. In the climax, there’s a scene where we are tied to a pillar. Rajji said, ‘We won’t untie you unless you talk to each other.’ It was all very funny. We laughed a lot during the shoot because the dialogues were so hilarious. We had fun and we fought as well.”
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