It is the ghoulish time of the year when countries in the Western hemisphere are prepping up for some ghastly fun. Despite being halfway across the globe from we too have embraced Halloween with arms wide open. Whether it involves attending costume parties, dressed in one’s scariest best, staying up all night to narrate ghost stories, visiting the cemetery, apple-bobbing, or watching horror movies on telly, the spirit of bewitching festivity is in the air.
With themes and inspirations changing each year, Nightlife and Image Consultant, Tamanna Pasha, says, “Since Halloween calls for costumes, party goers enjoy the flexibility of dressing like their favourite cartoon characters or zombies. This year, the TV series, Game of Thrones , is going to be a popular theme at costume parties. Maleficent and Day of the Dead are also popular themes.”
Witches, angels, devil, and pirates are considered passé. “Pop art/comic book Halloween makeup is the in-thing this year for men and women. Apart from that, superheroes and zombies are quite a hit among people. The Joker has been done to death and vampires are becoming outdated,” says makeup artist and beauty blogger, Naina Ruhail.
“Instead of resorting to face paint, makeup can be used to get the desired look. Simple products such as eye pencils, eye shadow, lipsticks can help you look ghoulish this Halloween,” she adds.
While there is bound to be Batman, Superman, Catwoman, and Spiderman at every other do, Captain America, Hulk, and Thor are the current hot favourites. Disney too has a colossal fan following and Elsa from Frozen takes over from Minnie Mouse and Daisy Duck.
Group costumes are also trending. “Two years ago, my friends and I dressed up as characters from The Addams Family . One year, we dressed up as Ron, Hermione, and Harry Potter. This year, I’m going dressed as a minion and I know friends who are going as smurfs,” says Preethy Jaishankar, a risk analyst.
When couples attend Halloween parties, there is a tendency to dress up as couples from movies and books, and right after Prince William married Kate Middleton, costume parties saw many a Duke and Duchess of Cambridge. “My husband doesn’t have much of a say when it comes to dressing up for Halloween,” says Natalie Cunningham, a freelance designer. “We have gone as Marshal and Lily from How I Met your Mother , as Edward and Bella from Stephanie Meyer’s Twilight series, as Tarzan and Jane, as Fred and Wilma Flintstone, and once even as peanut butter and jelly!”
Event manager, Ashik Dharmaraj, says, “It is about being as innovative as you can. There are many sources of inspiration. Sure, there are people who go buy themselves costumes and there are many party stores that stock up on Halloween supplies. But for the most part, dressing up for a Halloween does involves borrowing clothes and crafting props.”
With people soaking up in the spirit of spook, it sure looks like we’re but a few hours away from some bloodcurdling fun!
