Balwinder Singh tied turbans for all Dhurandhar artistes (Photo: Balwinder Singh/Dhurandhar File Image). While you have been enjoying the ‘peak detailing by Aditya Dhar’ Dhurandhar memes, you may have missed this small but significant detailing that made Rahman Dakait and Hamza common household names. It’s their outfits and the overall look amplified by their turbans or pagdis. While Smriti Chauhan was responsible for costume design in the film, pagdi specialist Balwinder Singh was on board to tie turbans for the cast, including actors Ranveer Singh and Akshaye Khanna.. Balwinder Singh with Aditya Dhar (Photo: Balwinder Singh). Talking to indianexpress.com about his humble beginnings, Singh, whose nickname is Inder, shared in Hindi, “I have been doing this for 15 years. Not as a job, but as a passion project. I always had this hobby of tying a dastaar (pagdi). I used to visit the gurdwara in my neighbourhood in Amritsar, Punjab. There are various activities in gurdwaras. Some play the harmonium, others take up service. So, I was inclined towards kirtan, and then I got interested in tying a dastaar. I only went to learn dastaar for a week. After that, I started practising on my own, and I tied different types and styles like Balochistani, Safa, Rajasthani turban, to name a few.”. Balwinder Singh tied Ranveer Singh’s character Hamza’s turban (Photo: Balwinder Singh). Singh first started tying turbans for his friends. “If someone gives me a photo, I can recreate the same style in no time. That is how I cultivated my hobby into my passion. No one told me to take this up. It has now become my identity,” the 30-year-old said.. Singh used to work on textiles in his shop near the Golden Temple. That’s when he met a TV crew that had come to shoot, in 2020-21. “I told them about my work. That’s how they got in touch with me for auditions. I started with small TV serial stints. Then, I was approached to tie a turban for an artist in the Anupam Kher-led 2025 Canadian film Calorie. I gave an audition and got selected. I also got feedback that I have done a good job,” Singh, who stays in Amritsar with his 1.5-year-old daughter, wife, and parents, said.. Balwinder Singh with Smriti Chauhan (Photo: Balwinder Singh). Then, he was approached for an audition for filmmaker Aditya Dhar’s Dhurandhar. “The shoot was in Amritsar in 2023. I got selected in the audition. I was told to recreate the styles of Balochistan. I tried it on myself using photos and videos. And costume director Smriti Chauhan ji shared that the Sardar pagdi is also needed for Ranveer Singh sir’s character. So, I tied pagdi for Ranveer Singh sir and Akshaye Khanna sir, as well as the background artistes. It took two and a half months for my work to be completed,” he recalled.. Singh shared that the actors were only expected to wear the pagdi at the time of the shoot. “If they felt uncomfortable, I used to tie again to maintain continuity,” he mentioned.. Sharin
