'Jodha Akbar' designer adds Bollywood light to Jyot

Remember the spectacular sets of Ashutosh Govarikar’s movie, ‘Jodha Akbar’? Don’t be surprised if you see equally impressive sets at the site near Thaltej crossroads where ‘Jyot’, the Jain exhibition on religious knowledge, is to be held. The organisers of the exhibition have roped in Girish Patel — the man who built the fabulous sets of the Hritik Roshan-Aishwarya Rai film — for the sets of the exhibition.

These days, Patel can be seen busy explaining to his workers at the Thaltej site the intricacies of the project they are working on. He says he wants to ensure that everything is made as per plan. The sets of the exhibition will be spread over an area of over 7 lakh square feet, he said.

Patel, who is a native of Idar, has worked in Bollywood for nearly six years. He has worked with eminent art directors such as Nitin Desai and Milabh Kapoor. Apart from ‘Jodha Akbar’, Patel has also made sets for reality shows such as, ‘Are Dewano Mujhe Pahchano’, and, ‘Maja Mahi Re’, besides special functions such as IIFA and Apsara awards.

“The organisers of Jyot have given me the design and ground plan for the whole exhibition site,” he said. “I am creating the set as per the design given to me, which is what I do in Bollywood too.”

More than 550 workers from Bollywood are working with Patel on the exhibition sets. “We worked for around one-and-a-half months in Mumbai on the planning of the sets. I have been working at the site only for the last one fortnight,” Patel said.

The basic design of the sets has been conceptualised by Acharya Dev Yugbhushan Suriswaraji Maharaj Saheb, also known as Nana Pundit Maharaj. Nishit Shah and Khantil Mehta have worked on the basic design and taken it forward in conceptualisation and implementation. Patel said the ‘Jyot’ project is different from Bollywood projects in that it is on a religious theme. “It is a religious project, which is why it cannot be treated commercially,” he said. “My commitment to the project is entirely professional but I cannot ignore the emotions attached to it.”