Laiqa Hasan has made a name for herself in the local beauty industry. After starting out at Nabila's, Laiqa opened her own salon and today she has a large clientele. She keeps herself busy with fashion shoots, TV commercials and recently, soaps and plays. She is one of the few makeup artists who took it as a challenge to work for the redundant plays and dramas and give them a new look.
It is Laiqa's quality of work, which made her work with some of the top Indian stars. The list includes top notch singers Hariharan and Jagjit Singh and big Bollywood stars like Sushmita Sen and recently Manisha Koirala apart from a number of Indian soap stars famous by their drama names, Kashish, Sujal, Kumkum, Parikshit, Konika and Priyanka. You! finds out how was her experience of working with them and focusing on her work with Manisha Koirala on her visit to Pakistan a couple of months ago...
It was just like working with any other star or actress. What made her stand out was her attitude and her humble behaviour. She was extremely accommodating. She was quiet and didn't have any starry tantrums unlike most stars.
How was her face to work with?
Laiqa: Her face was easy, she is a pretty girl. It didn't challenge me a bit. She didn't need much makeup as she has a lovely complexion and she carries herself quite well.
What is the one particular feature that you like about her face?
Laiqa: She has a beautiful smile so the most important feature, which complimented my makeup, was her lips. I also enjoyed enhancing her sparkling eyes with a dash of mascara and eyeliner.
One Indian star that you would like to work with and why?
Laiqa: I would love to work with dream diva Madhuri Dixit. She has a great face and it's my dream to further beautify her striking features.
Who are the Indians stars that you have worked with and how did you get the chance to do so?
Laiqa: The first shoot I did was with Niraj who is Bombay Vikings' lead vocalist. My second shoot was with Hariharan in Dubai - he was doing a song with Strings, the song was titled Bolo Bolo and I was the official makeup artist for the video. Then Jagjit Singh came to perform in Karachi at Mohatta Palace, I was called to do his makeup for the event.
Then I worked with Sushmita Sen when she came in for a show with Malaika Arora and Saif Ali Khan held at the Country club in Karachi. Then I did various Indian TV soap celebrities' makeup known by their drama names as Kashish, Sujal, Kumkum, Parikshit, Konika and Priyanka. They were all part of joint productions of India and Pakistan. My future plans include Poonam Dhillon's makeup for a Pakistani play.
Why do you think you were selected as a makeup artist for all these stars?
Laiqa: Because people approached me, they had heard about me. All of them know my work and it is appreciated in various sections of our media.
You have done Pakistani celebrities as well, what is the one thing that is different between stars of both the countries?
Laiqa: There is no difference as far as faces are concerned.Two things that I observed the most, while working with the Indian stars, was that they were quite professional and punctual.
And they respect you a lot, no matter who you are. Whether they are dealing with a spot boy, light man or makeup artist or the director, they are very respectful towards one and all.
How did they feel about working with Pakistani team?
Laiqa: They were full of praises for the Pakistani crew. What I felt was that their experience was positive. It's just that our directors and crew make them bigger than they actually are by giving them too much importance.
Laiqa Hasan is one local beautician who has worked with some high profile Indian stars. Mag4You! talks to her about her various experiences.
