Look who’s stuck on makeup

Delhi grooms are getting powdered and painted like never before.

It’s a different brush with manhood — one in every five men in the city have spent Rs.6,000 - Rs.8,000 on professional makeup services for a wedding ceremony, theirs or a friend or relative’s. Makeup artists in the Capital claim that they get nearly 15-35 bookings for men’s makeup every week, most of them for decking up the groom and his male family members.

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"Grooms say they want to look their best in the wedding album. They want imperfections to be hidden, their complexion brightened and their features sharpened," says makeup artist Hemant Tiwari, who handles 15 to 20 bookings every week. Beautician Priyanka Kapoor says, "I get requests for groom makeup not just from Delhi, but Chandigarh and Meerut, too. And, it’s not only the groom — his brothers, cousins, and friends, too, queue up for the polish." Of course, the colour palette for men is subtler than that used for bridal makeup. "We use shades like muted earthy browns and copper for guys," says beauty expert Manju Rawat. "Rather than playing with different colours, we concentrate on contouring the face, sharpening a fat nose, camouflaging a double-chin or making cheekbones appear sharper. Also, no gloss and shimmer," she adds.

But, most men don’t want to admit that they spent hours in front of the mirror. “Most of those who’ve availed of these services would deny having done so,” says beautician Chandni Singh. Kapoor agrees. “Guys prefer to keep it makeup a hush-hush affair. I guess it’s because of the fear that the society may ridicule them and challenge their masculinity. They are eager to hide imperfections and look good with some professional help, but they’d never walk into a shop and ask for a makeup product,” she says.

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In the men’s makeup room...
Concealer pencils to cover frown lines and dark circles under the eyes
Transparent mascara to make lashes look thicker, more prominent
Foundation solutions to look fairer
Eye shadows — brown, copper
Light shades of lipstick and lip gloss
Rouge to define cheekbones