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Aalim Hakim: Making The Cut

With a drive to stand out from the crowd and a creative gene, Aalim Hakim has managed to achieve a one-name status as the celebrity hairdresser in India. For MensXP’s March Cover, we caught up with the mane mogul where he talked about the challenges of the unconventional job, what goes behind creating a celebrity look and continuing his father’s legacy while making his own in the hairstyling world.

Story By: Anjali Agarwal
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The man behind the scene-stealing looks of several A-listers, Aalim Hakim started his career experimenting on his friends from college and theatre group. He is now solely responsible for most of the viral hair transformations and coolest looks we have seen on the biggest celebrities.  

Aalim has styled, cut and coloured the mane of the who’s who of Bollywood, the South film industry and the cricket world, from Salman Khan to Hardik Pandya.  

The art is in his DNA. His father Hakim Kairanvi had a long list of celebrity clientele including Amitabh Bachchan, Sunil Dutt and Shashi Kapoor. He decided to continue his legacy a decade later when he was just 16. He had big shoes to fill. 

It worked for him because he confesses to being a rebel from the beginning. “Being different was very important to me,” he says. This is reflected in his work and the brand name he’s created for himself. “I made an extra effort to make myself a little different and branding of this profession in a very different way. I did things in a more flashy way so it can inspire the new generation. I didn't care what people said; I did what I felt like. That's how you become a figure who people look up to,” he adds.  

He seeks to change the outlook of people who look down upon hairdressing and hairstyling as a petty job. “I don't want to die like a normal hairdresser. I don't want to die by just doing a job. I want to change this whole mindset of people that hairdressing is not a cool job,” he says.  

Here are the excerpts from the conversation with Aalim Hakim, as he talks about this unconventional job, what goes behind a celebrity look and how he made the cut in the hairdressing world as the OG hairstylist. 

Tell us about your journey. How did you make it into the film industry?  

My father was a hairdresser to a lot of Bollywood actors from Dilip Kumar to Sunil Dutt. He passed away when I was nine years old. When I went to college, while most of the students in my college wanted to become an actor, doctor or engineer, I wanted to do something else; more on the creative side.  

I decided to become a hairdresser and start where my father stopped. Hakim was a huge brand in 1984 but there was a gap of almost ten years when I decided to revive it. I put my name after my father's name, called it Hakim’s Aalim but it was a struggle initially. I was studying and doing a few clients at the same time. Then, L'Oreal saw my talent, sponsored my education and sent me abroad to assist a few international hairdressers. When I came back, I was a more technically sound hairdresser and I started doing more clients.  

Gradually, the actors got to know through word of mouth and more celebs started coming to me after seeing my work on Sunjay Dutt, Salman Khan and Anil Kapoor.  

I worked with South industry biggies like Rajinikanth, Prabhas, NTR and Ram Charan and it got multiplied. Soon, it became a trend to get hair styled by me whether it's from the fashion world or the film world.  

Jacket: Rohit Gandhi + Rahul Khanna; Knit polo: Perona; Pants, Marks & Spencer

You’ve taken the road less travelled. Were there any raised eyebrows and disapproval from people? How did you deal with it?  

When I told my friends that I wanted to become a hairdresser, a few of them used to make fun of me saying “you want to become a ‘hajam’?” or “You want to shampoo people’s heads?” It was disheartening when there was no support from people but I wanted to prove them wrong. I wanted them to give more respect and see it as a cool and creative job.  

I started doing things differently because I wanted to do the branding of this profession differently. I wanted to change the mindset of people, including my friends who looked down upon this job. Now, their kids are learning in our academy to become hairdressers.  

It’s not just a boring job where you shampoo or blow-dry or cut hair; you make someone look good. I feel the mindset in the last 10 years has changed.   

Take us through your day. What does a day in the life of a celebrity hairstylist look like? 

My day is mostly pre-planned. I check my diary first thing when I wake up in the morning. I know what I'm doing for up to 10-12 days because it's all as per appointment. So, mostly, it consists of designing a lot of looks for celebrities and movie stars and travelling to a lot of cities.  

There are three-four look tests when we are doing a particular look for a movie so then there are meetings with the costume designer, makeup artists and the director of the film where we discuss the character and the look.  

Jacket and joggers: Siddartha Tytler; Rings: Outhouse

Most men in Bollywood are not very experimental with their hair and beard. Very few dye their hair. When Arjun Rampal went blonde, he literally broke the internet. Why do you think men are so hesitant and do you see it changing with the new-age actors? 

It has changed and men are getting more experimental. It's not like what it used to be earlier. Actors want to try something cool, experiment with beard shapes and hair colour, try new hairstyles when they are on a break for a few months or go on a vacation.  

For Arjun, the director wanted him to have platinum blonde hair so Arjun and I sat down to discuss what could work for his face. We had a few references and went ahead with them.  

What is the biggest challenge in doing a celebrity hairstyle?

When it’s not for a movie, then it's simply because there are not many people involved. It's only me and the actor and I am working on making his personality look better. It’s just giving a nice haircut which is easy. But when you are doing it for a movie, it doesn’t have to just look nice but should be in line with the character.  

Creating the right mood board and using the right products is important. For example, if the character is poor, he cannot have shiny hair. So the hair has to look the part.  

Jacket and joggers: Siddartha Tytler; Rings: Outhouse

What is the go-to look or hairstyle for Bollywood actors these days? 

Curls are back and men are loving it. They are tonging their hair and keeping long hair. They want to look different and try something different from what others are doing. They are not following one single trend.   

How do you keep up with the latest hair trends?  

I keep my eyes open to what's happening around the world and try to do the best I can do. It's important to see other hairdressers, fashion icons and new collections and figure out how you can make it look practical, approachable and acceptable for someone who is walking on the road or for a red carpet or for an after-party.  

Trend, I feel, happens when there is a lot of repetition of a particular style but I believe you should never follow a trend if you want to be iconic. That's why most of the actors like me because I always want to break the ice rather than follow what people are doing. 

It's not about being original. Nobody is original. Everybody gets their references but I try and add my particular edginess to a particular style to stand out from the others.  

Jacket: Rohit Gandhi + Rahul Khanna; Knit polo: Perona; Pants, Marks & Spencer

Tell us a quick hack to fix a bad hair day. 

It’s very important for men to carry styling products like a small jar of pomade, wax or gel all the time. According to me, it's good manners like keeping body spray handy. 

A lot of men have this habit of going to the washroom and setting and styling their hair with water. Instead, carry your favourite styling products to tame flyaways, set your hair and keep the sides sleek. Set Wet has got some amazing products.  

Who was the first celebrity you worked with and one celebrity you’d like to see in your chair?  

I started experimenting on my friends who then became celebrities like Vivek Oberoi, Bosco-Caesar and Shreyas Talpade. But my first celebrity clients were Chandrachoor Singh for Maachis and Manoj Bajpai for Satya 

Talking about a celebrity I wish to work with, my only wish is to do a good job on whoever my client is. Obviously, it gives me happiness when there is a famous personality but it's not about having a famous personality in my chair.  

Tell us about MS Dhoni’s latest look that you created. Could you decode the look for us? How did you come up with it? Did the cricketer have any inputs in that? 

Mahi doesn't interfere that much. He gives you a free hand to style. It was a character where he was playing a rapper so I gave him a different beard shape, cool haircut from the sides, a nice fade and a lot of texture in his hair.  

I did a lot of texturizing at the back, created a V-shape and a small tadpole ponytail. I tried to make him look as different as possible. Everyone loved it and even he was shocked that the look went viral.   

Tell us one grooming trend that should die in 2022 and one hair trend that will be big. 

I don't think people will be keeping long beards or Lumberjack beards which were huge in 2019 and 2020. People are going for a sharper and clean-shaven look. You’ll see different beard styles like goatee, french and Van Dyke. Long, wavy hair is going to be big!  

Tell us 3 must-have hair products for men with curly hair. 

Pomade, cool hold gel and hair spray. 

Jacket: L’avenir Skins; Bracelets and rings, Outhouse

Tell us some hair care tips every guy should swear by in summer. 

Drinking a lot of water, conditioning and using boosters like leave-in conditioners are very important during summers to retain moisture in the hair.  

What's one thing you love and one thing you hate about your job? 

I love everything about my job from stress to challenges. The only thing I hate is when I am away from my kids. I wish I was able to be around my family more.  

What advice would you give youngsters who want to become hairdressers and hair stylists?  

Do what your heart says and don't listen to anybody who puts you down. Also, most of the young generation is in too much of a hurry. They want fame at a very early stage which is why they miss out on the craft. Learn your craft then only you’d be able to create your own language.  

It’s a creative field and creativity takes time. So don't just run after money. Take it easy, have patience and stay focused on your craft.  

Jacket and joggers: Siddartha Tytler; Rings: Outhouse

If you could change one thing about the men's grooming industry in India, what would it be?  

I feel there should be more barbering schools in this country. Most men working in the barbershops are either self-trained or have learned the skill from their family members. 

They are not highly educated in their own skill. There should be more not technically sound barbers and there should be proper schools to train them in India. 

Credits
Shot by: Anubhav Sood
Styled by: Shaurya Athley
HMU: Gaurav Goswami
Fashion Assistants: Aprajita Puri, Sejal Satish
Location: Karma Studio