Ace makeup artist Abhijit Paul shows two trendy bridal looks raging this season

The big fat Indian wedding is really getting fatter. According to a recent survey conducted by the Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT) on 4302 traders in 35 cities, around 32 lakh weddings will take place in these 41 days between November 4 and December 14 generating a business of about a whopping Rs 3.75 lakh crore for the country's traders.  

Apart from the bludgeoning industry around bridal fashion, make-up comprises an integral part of a bride's look. With social media increasingly dictating the lifestyle of young millennials, it has become imperative for them to look their best on their D-day. And to help you guide what's trending in bridal make-up this season, we have shot two looks -- one Bengali and the other non-Bengali -- with none other than the city's ace makeup artist Abhijit Paul. 

"Over the past few years, would-be brides are increasingly wanting to channel the minimal bridal looks, emulating the global trend of the subtle and no-makeup looks. This has also pervaded the wedding looks and hence gone are the days of cakey brides with tons of layers on their faces. The idea now is to enhance and highlight the inner radiance and not hide the flaws behind thick layers of concealer but include them as a part of the whole beautiful self," says Abhijit.

For Indulge, we shot with the very bubbly model Sushmita Roy to create a happy bride. "Nowadays the imagery of a bride immediately recalls happy smiling faces rather than the shy and reticent ones that dominated even a decade back. Modern brides thoroughly enjoy their wedding day and are uninhibited and independent and that should also shine through their makeup. Makeup shouldn't restrain them from smiling in fear of makeup cracks and lines on their faces," he tells us.

Abhijit feels that the best way to channel the dewy natural and fresh bridal look is to keep your skin plump and moist before the first brush of primer. One should remember to moisturise the skin well for the makeup to soak in and stay longer without forming crack lines. "If you have oily skin, go for those water-based moisturisers and very thin primers. The face should be supple and soft for makeup to set in well," he advises.

For the Bengali look, Abhijit has kept the look radiant by using a very light primer and water-based foundation for a long-lasting effect. The necessary contouring of the face was done to give the face more sharpness before applying the mandatory studio fix HD compact followed by ample strokes of golden highlighter on the cheeks, chin, forehead and nose. "Since Bengali girls are known for their beautiful eyes, I have highlighted the eyes with heavy kohl and well-done brows with just a touch of simple chandan dots on the forehead above the browlines. A mandatory medium red bindi and braided bun complete the look," Abhijit says.

For the non-Bengali look, Abhijit chose to keep it dewy and glowing in tandem with the dreamy pastel pink lehenga. I used a lot of peachy pink blush for the dewy glow and went light on the eyes with a half-smoky look to bring out that dreamy look. I did up the lips with a naked brown shade and completed the get-up with a gelled bun," he adds.

Abhijit also warns the brides to not go experimental with everything they see. “Not everything that looks good on others will look good on you too. Experimenting with looks is a good thing but you should be careful to know where to draw the line. If you have pimples on your face, a lot of shimmery highlights will make them more prominent and if you already have a chiselled face, you needed further slim it down with heavy contouring. On the other hand, you can have a little bit more contouring if you have a heavy and round face. Don't go overboard with caterpillar eyebrows either. See what suits you most and ask your makeup expert to try out a few looks on you much before your wedding day, to see what looks best on you,” advises Abhijit.

But the makeup expert feels, even if you get the best makeup artist in town, it’s not possible to turn badly maintained skin into a glowy dewy one. “One should take care of the skin very properly and repair should begin six months prior to the wedding day. Eat healthy, drink lots of water and exercise to keep your skin plump. The inner glow must come from within and for your skin to be happy, you need to feel happy from inside. The best glow is the inner glow,” signs of the makeup pro.

Glowing Tips

• Moisturise the skin properly before makeup
• Use water-based primer and foundation to avoid the cakey look
• Get a thick mascara that doesn’t clump up
• Use highlighter only if you have a smooth skin texture
• Go easy on garish bright matte lips

Pictures: Saurabh Mukherjee/Model: Sushmita Roy/Hair and make up: Abhijit Paul, assisted by Sananda Miondal Laha/Styling: Poulami Gupta / Sari: Indian Silk House Agency, Lehenga: Pallavi Poddar/Jewellery: Nemichand Bamalwa Jewellers, Senco Gold and Diamonds/Location courtesy: Hyatt Regency Kolkata/Food partner: Saptapadi