Amazing Women Ep.3 - Divya - The Artist of Raw Dreams

Not all of us like the idea of marriage, but almost all the women at one point or other in our lives have thought about our wedding. We have dreamed about it, orchestrated with absolute perfection. The décor, the flowers, the sangeet, mehandhi, the jewelry, the clothes and of course the makeup. The groom is usually a blur in those dreams as we don’t really bother.

Like a wise, old man married man said, “while marriage is about the two people who are getting married, the wedding is always about the bride(s). And when my turn to be a bride came, I was just wrecked package of anxiety, not knowing what to wear, how to prep my skin, where to scout for rented jewelry, pretty much nothing. The only thing I did know was that I should book a make-up artist quite early or the good ones would be gone. I turned to my good friend Sukanya, and she just whispered a name, one name – Divyalakshmi.

I booked her for my wedding and left her hanging without any details. And I went running back to her, two weeks before the wedding, desperately asking her what to do. She took up the mantle from me then, planning my bridal things one thing at a time. We designed my bridal attire over long Whatsapp chats and Pinterest boards, and I had my things sorted within a week. She was more than a makeup artist, she had become my beloved bridesmaid.

And, five days before my wedding, I went to her for my trial makeup and that’s when I first saw in person, and I knew then and there, this woman was going to an integral part of my journey for the rest of my life.

In her yet-to-be furnished apartment, with a lone dressing table, she spoke to me with such infecting enthusiasm, that it immediately calmed and relaxed me. She talked about her own wedding that was just a couple of months away, her thoughts about doing her own make-up (this stunned me) all the while, molding my face into something ethereal. When she finally finished, I looked at the mirror wholly prepared to see the most comical version of myself ever, but what I saw was a woman in her prime element, the utmost of her grace and beauty, a timeless version of her beauty that was going to be etched in her memory forever, an ethereal woman – a bride. And that moment, I knew my big day was going to be perfect.

Thinking back about it, I remember being intimated about the sheer number of brushed she had. “How did this start?” I asked her because I knew that’s where I should start. “I believe every woman has it in their genes. They realize and get into it when they start getting compliments/recognition. I was in school, and we bid bye to the uniforms during Fridays. We were so hesitant to repeat our outfits. So I do mix and match, cut and mend to turn the used one to fresh one. Friends/teachers started complimenting, and it continued!” she shrugged in that elegant, modest way.

I smiled, this was how she had been all through my bridal sessions with her. It is quite a delicate job as you don’t just work with the body of the woman, you work with the heart, and all the emotions, running through it. You’re practically giving the face to her dream. “how do you manage such a responsible, high-risk job?

“It’s every girl’s dream to look at their best on their big day. Again, going back to my childhood, I used to keep all my cousins and sisters in line and doll them up. After seeing so many known people(cousins, friends) getting disappointed on their big day due to the makeover that wasn’t delivered as promised or charging a bomb for a good makeover, I don’t want to let this happen for my sisters or me at least. So, I learned, practiced and now I have 40 happy brides and the happiest bride-me! Yeah, I did my own. My only motto, satisfied service with less hit on the pockets. Money doesn’t make me more than the happy brides

I had to agree what she said comes from the heart, because I was one of her happy brides. And I am still amazed by the way she handled all the craziness, my mom’s yelling and several other hasty, blurry sights that are so typical of a wedding. I can understand how had it would be to handle such tight-scheduled situations where the tension is running high, and the bride is at her most vulnerable time, does it ever make you nervous? How do you manage to overcome it ?” I asked. “Smile. Yeah, Just a smile. That covers my nervous face, and if it’s going out of control, I imagine myself  as the bride, which give me loads of confidence to make them look super good.”

This line of work has the craziest of timings. I remember her coming in 2:30 AM in the morning to my muhurtham makeup to my place and then swinging by the temple where my wedding was taking place to give me a second costume change, calmly waiting for me from 4:00 PM at my reception venue and then rushing back to her full-time  job around 7:30 PM after my make-up session,

“Phew! how do you manage it to do it all?”

“I have an excellent support system from my family. My mom, sisters, dad and my Man. They always make sure that there is at least one with me or at least they will be dropping me in the location if they can’t make it. It used to be really difficult to manage before my wedding. As I had to travel alone in the early morning around 2 AM. I go by cabs and of course, would be scared to death. I will be making some conversation(asking about his kids, family, business) with the driver just to keep it sane. Until I reach the destination, my pulse would be out of control. Everything will have vanished when I see that satisfied smile on my bride’s face. What more would I ask for?”  she smiled.

What more indeed? I mused and then asked her much the same. “What do you think lies ahead?”

“To be short: LOVE AND LIFE, she laughed. “As much as I love reading books/articles/blogs, I love speaking too. So, 2019 has given me a path to venture into travel vlogs. It should be up on YouTube soon!” Designing and wearing my own sketches for my wedding and doing my bridal makeup myself had given me such sense of satisfaction and happiness, I am hoping to expand on that idea to give a customized experience to all my brides. Keeping my fingers crossed ” she said and crossed her fingers, I crossed mine too, wishing her all the luck! “What message do you have for the women out there?” I asked my signature final question.

“DON’T underestimate yourself. You are more capable than what u think. U have the power to bring a human to this amazing world. So, Just give a try, you would be surprised by its results. Trust me on that!”

she smiled.

“I do!” I smiled back.

PS: Divya’s Instagram Handle: Divya MUA on Instagram