Do what you love doing and then you do not have to slog a single day because your job will be your passion. Such is the story of the eminent hair stylist, Aasif Ahmed. This is the man who always knew what he had to do. That is just why he had the pluck to give up the promising in public relations and film marketing.
Our hair is that attribute with which we all are obsessed. It is no news to us that even Aasif was obsessed with his hair from a very young age. This man has faced his share of hardships in this industry, and now he is a leading hair stylist as he is the go-to man of gorgeous beauties like Kriti Sanon, Sania Mirza, Aishwarya Rai, Jacqueline Fernandez, Alia Bhatt and many more such names.
Aasif spoke to hotfridaytalks.com while on his way back from the trailer launch of “Luka Chuppi” and here’s what he shared.
Aasif did not start off his career as a hair stylist. “Before I started working in the marketing team of UTV, I used to work with Bollywood Hungama as a web designer. From there I gradually switched on to client servicing within the company and I thoroughly enjoyed the job. Then after getting into UTV, I did Public relations, movie marketing, digital marketing, celebrity management etc.” he says.
So, how did this big switch in the career come about? From being 8 years into media handling to becoming a hairstylist is not cakewalk. “From a very tender age, I was pretty interested in hair styling. I myself have very thick hair and my hair is curly. Every time I went to the barber, I would tell him to do something new to my hair. But during those days, we did not have fancy salons around, so the local barbers would not be able to do something great with my hair and I was fed-up. So, this entire interest regarding what new and interesting can I do with my own hair, led to my inclination towards hair styling. I already had the knack for hair styling. So, I decided to do a small course in hairstyling and I absolutely loved it when I did it.” Aasif says.
So, did he have an upper hand since he already had great contacts in the industry?
“While working in the marketing department of UTV I dealt with many celebrities, right from Aishwarya from her Jodha Akbar days to Sonam Kapoor, I had worked with many other top celebrities because handling talent was part of my profile then. But honestly, when I got into hair styling, I did not approach anybody. I believed that if my work is good, I will be noticed. I would have been very easy for me to make one call and people would be ready to give me a chance to work with them. But, I always wanted to achieve success for my talent and not for being resourceful. I had met Aishwarya when I was handling promotions for Jodha Akbar and today I work as her hair styler too. We often speak of those old days and feel happy about them. It’s a different feeling altogether.” Aasif confirms.
Like we all know, success never comes easy. Aasif had his share of struggles too. He says, “I started with very small projects like small photo shoots. I worked in south movies for some item songs etc. Initially getting a break was very difficult, and there were days, when I literally had no work. I would get frustrated at times, thinking about how I left a secure job and got into this, then again I would think that I will get the right opportunity when it’s the right time, and eventually it happened. It took some time and it’s not easy at all, especially freelancing after leaving a secured job, here you know that at the end of the month you get your pay check. But here you have no idea when you will have work next. But what sustained me was my passion and love for hair styling and slowly everything fell in place.”
Makeup Artist Adrian Jacob’s mom, Irene Jacobs, who has been a veteran hairstylist, has been a great inspiration for Aasif. “She belonged to the times, when they did not have the hair styling equipment readily available these days. They had to work extra hard, much more than what hair stylers today have to. I got to learn small tips and techniques from her in the initial days of my career that do not require these gadgets, and those things come really handy for me even today.” Aasif says.
Here’s what Aasif has to say to those who wish to make it big in the field of hair styling. “Getting to meet celebrities and spending time with them should not be the reason to get in to this field of work. You should be here only if you are passionate about your work, no matter who you are meeting or who’s hair you are styling. So, you should love what you do in the first place. You should not get into this just to be in the glamour world or for any other wrong reasons, but only for your passion towards hair styling. Of course your hard work, dedication counts a lot, if you are a hair stylist and are still struggling to make it big. Even if you are good at your job, you may not get noticed immediately, but you need to be patient and wait for the right time. You need to be aware and upgrade yourself with the latest trends, fashion and styles.” Aasif says.
So, the story of Aasif shows, if you have the blessing of creativity in you and if the passion is sufficiently ignited in your heart, then no force in the world will stand in your way. Here’s wishing Aasif loads of success in the years to come.
