‘Hairstyling as profession gaining respect around world’

He has styled the hair

of film stars like

Salman Khan, Ranbir Kapoor, Hrithik Roshan, Saif Ali Khan and Shahid Kapoor, creating a niche for himself in the field. Celebrity stylist Aalim Hakim now feels proud to see his profession getting respect around the world.

“I think hairstyling as a profession has changed immensely. Hairdressers are becoming celebrities. Also, creative satisfaction is there so parents want their kids to be hairdressers, unlike past. It was more of a time-pass thing a few years back, but now many people want to get into creative field whether it is hairdressing or designing,” the 38-year-old Aalim told.

Today, Aalim has salons across the globe, in Mumbai, Hyderabad, Bangalore and Dubai, by the name of Hakim’s Aalim Hair n’ Tattoo Lounge.

Aalim had initially harboured a dream of becoming an actor, but eventually realized that his passion lay in making others look good.

“I was a child when my father passed away and my uncle initiated me into the profession. However, during my college days, I was confused about what do and there was a time when I wanted to be an actor,” he said. Aalim’s father Hakim was a hairstylist and boasted of clients like Amitabh Bachchan, Rajesh Khanna, Dilip Kumar, Sunil Dutt and Vinod Khanna.

Getting away from father’s shadow was not easy for Aalim.

“I got a lot of respect from the industry. Salman (Khan) with whom I was working during ‘Baghban’ days introduced me to Amitabh Bachchan. The moment Mr. Bachchan got to know that I am the son of the person who styled him, he hugged me and asked about my family. There is a lot of respect after what dad built during his entire career,” he said.

“But the respect only helps in initial stages, rest we have to build ourselves. It can help you get first chance but not the second chance,” said the hairstylist who is geared up for his show “Style Inc. with Aalim Hakim”, to be aired on TLC starting March 8.

Aalim picked up the reins of hairstyling at the age of 16 and his first Bollywood project later.

“My first Bollywood project started in 1993-94 when I took the styling of Chandrachur Singh for the movie Maachis; then I took Manoj Bajpayee’s styling for Satya and gradually things started shaping up. Ajay Devgn in Omkara, Singham and Once Upon A Time in Mumbaai, Ranbir Kapoor in Rockstar are some of my favourite works,” he said. (IANS)