Dream wedding, courtesy Good Samaritans

Strap: A Kashmiri makeup artiste and a wedding photographer don’t want financial prowess to hinder a bride’s desire of looking resplendent on the big day and make memories for posterity

Lovedeep Sidhu

Almost every happy bride-to-behopes her wedding day will mark the start of afortuitous marital life, denoted by a glow that speaks of the realization of many dreams.But, for those who can’t afford to earmark large funds for what might seem like excesses – such as professional makeup and photography – it’sthebenevolent spirit of certain individuals that helps spread cheer. SaheelQureshi, a celebrity makeup artist who runs a salon by the name of Saheel’s Makeover Studio in Chandigarh’s Sector 34, travels across the country to not just honour his professional commitments, but to also help ready brides who wouldn’t have otherwise been able to pay for his skillset.

Saheel, 39, has been in the beauty industry for the past 23 years. Born in LalChowk, Srinagar, to a journalist father and a teacher mother, he started out young after losing most material possessions to destruction that befell them as a result of violence in the state. Whilst still enrolled as a fashion design student in Jammu, he began to test his makeup skills on others. “With my father being a scribe and two elder sisters who became radio jockeys, I’d been exposed to the world of television and multimedia arts early on. This is perhaps what fuelled my interest in beautifying people using makeup. There was a need to be financially independent, so I dived in, irrespective of people’s jibes at a male ‘who’ll end up being a darzi (tailor) or barber’,” he tells us.

Interestingly, even before he could make it big, Saheel wanted to contribute to the social milieu that he was a part of. Following the dictum of ‘doing what you can with what you have where you are’, he began to offer makeup services to girls from lesser privileged backgrounds on their wedding day. “I learnt from my parents that good karma is what makes the world goes round. And, it all comes back. So, no matter a girl’s economic status, if I can help her look her best on such an important and auspicious day of her life, I’ll only be too glad,” he says.

After completing his diploma in fashion design, Saheel went to Mumbai in hopes of making it big and never looked back. Despite adversities –including falling prey to a pickpocket on a Mumbai local as a result of which he lost all of his money – the artist prefers to remember his blessings, such as the fact that work offers never dried up. “In 2017, a work opportunity brought me to Chandigarh. While that didn’t work out, I did end up opening my own salon – mostly with borrowed money. I learnt that the sister of one of my employee’s was to get married, and that hiring a professional makeup artist was a far-fetched dream for them. I offered to do her makeup, as well as all pre-bridal hair and skin services. The smile of gratitude on her face is the best gift one can ask for,” he says.

Though Saheel works on glamming-up famous faces, including Disha Patani, Sonam Kapoor, Deepika Padukone, Katrina Kaif, Biapasha Basu, and various other film and TV stars, he doesn’t find it hard to take the time out to do social work. “I now teach makeup skills to the under-privileged free of cost, and have also begun indulging in my love for directing and acting in plays,” laughs Saheel, adding, “Every part of this country feels like home to me, and every person a part of my family. My belief in equality for all comes from my parents, to whom I owe my interest in working for the community. It keeps me going.”

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Box: Happiness in a frame

From capturing snow-topped mountains and blooming valleys to simple hill weddings, Kullu-based photographer Veeresh Pathania has found many a muse to amuse his camera’s lens with. One of three partners of Pixel Dhaba, a studio specialising in portraiture, short films, and portfolios, Veeresh ventured into wedding photography six years ago when he stumbled upon a humble wedding in the hills and decided to shoot it free of cost. “It occurred to me that the girl deserved a professional photo album of her wedding as much as anyone else. After all, it’s a special day for every bride who’d love to treasure these memories for a lifetime,” says Veeresh.

Having covered three such weddings so far and spent many thousands of rupees from their pockets, Veeresh and his team find the bride’s smile of gratitude most rewarding. “The first time that a new bride’s family came to pick up the photo album was a heart-warming moment. It’s something they couldn’t quite believe they’d have ever been able to afford,” he says.

Apart from photographing weddings, they also try and help the family monetarily. Veeresh is currently working on a documentary on the famous Kullu Dussehra since the last few years, while his co-partner Shiv Kumar is busy making one on snow leopards and their third partner, Neelam Gupta, manages office.