The hands behind great looks

Who says makeup is a woman's thing? There are numerous successful male makeup artists who have excelled in the field forcing people to agree that putting on makeup is not always important to try one's hand at it. Joining the clan is Suresh Pisharody, a software professional who quit his eight-year-long career to concentrate on his passion. Says Suresh, "I think I will feel content once I pursue my passion as career. Making people look beautiful is something I strongly believe I am good at, and it is this trust in me that is paving my path to success in a field that is overflowing with experts."

Suresh got this affinity towards makeup from his father Radhakrishna Pisharody who was a well-known makeup artist specialised in drama makeup and making the props required for the set. "When I was a child, I used to accompany my father to various venues where he put makeup on theatre artistes. My interest in the field started from there. However, I always had more inclination towards special effects makeup that is a bit different as well as difficult in terms of achieving the exact look. I took my baby steps in the field of makeup by taking up small advertising projects of my friends. I also did Kathakali makeup (chutti) for various events as I am trained in it.”

“However, it was after working in a Malayalam short film that my friends who are in advertising called me to join their team for multiple projects. Working for commercials in Hindi was like school to me. In addition to learning the details of makeup in terms of the products and accessories that provide more finishing, I could also make good contacts in the industry,” says Suresh, who worked overtime to meet his deadlines at office, so that he could take leave when he was called for makeup assignments.

Some of the famous TV commercials that Suresh has worked in include Samsung, Coca-Cola, Jio, Real Juice, Berger Paints, Tanishq, Celebrity Cricket League, Kerala Blasters, Indian Premier League etc. He has also associated with a Hindi short film named Cola and magazines like Man, FWD, Vanitha and many other leading publishers.

When asked about the challenges and competitions he has to face, Suresh says, “We might think that technology is something that keeps on upgrading, however, this is also applicable to makeup. Not even the makeup artists have a count of the variety of products that are available in the market. The list of accessories is also very long, which keeps on extending every few months. In order to keep a track on the new trends, I use my contacts and hire professional movie makeup artists for a random small assignment. Though I need to pay them a hefty amount, I get to learn from them, which according to me is priceless.”

Suresh’s career in the field of makeup has started to take new turns with him getting a couple of offers from Bollywood as well. The artist says in future, he would like to specialise in VFX makeup and prosthetic makeup.