Celeb Bites With

Dr Jamuna Pai

She is among India’s most successful and leading cosmetologists, and sits pretty at the intersection of medicine, beauty, entrepreneurship and celebrity culture

Text & Photographs: Farzana Contractor

Location: Aamchee, Mumbai

I believe, even as a child at St. Joseph’s school, you were totally into beauty.
Yes, I was deeply aware of what beauty meant. It was an OCD situation but I was very conscious of looking smart even then. I would iron out every crease, every wrinkle from my school uniform myself. The maid’s ironing just did not cut it! 

And decades later you are still ironing out wrinkles! From faces of women and perhaps men. How does it feel to have been at the cusp of the evolution of aesthetics in India?
Very rewarding, honestly. For more than 30 years I have been committed to that cause. It is a passion that just grew and grew.
 
You began as a doctor who gradually moved to aesthetics, when it was still unconventional, how did that happen?
Getting into aesthetics was unchartered territory. After studying Medicine from the college at Nair Hospital, I practised as a doctor for 10 years, looking after school children at a municipal school. Then marriage happened and there was a gap. After which my deep creative urges took over, I wanted to follow a mid-path. Starting a salon was never an option. I was aware of the international changes taking place in the medical-aesthetic world and so I decided to go with that flow, follow my instinct.

You went to England to study medical aspects of beauty and returned home to start your own beauty clinic. You then went on to becoming a pioneer: brought Botox into the country, 26 years ago, what was the reaction of peers and patients?
There was a lot of apprehension, that Botox can cause paralysis and so on. I can understand that, after all it was a foreign body being injected into you and we were at a very nascent stage. But with education that slowly faded and trust in Botox grew. Today, it’s quite a commonplace procedure.

But redoing a face would be challenging, it does call for tremendous creativity.
For sure. Just one simple filler sometimes is enough. You just have to know where that filler ought to go. But I am honest about my work. For example, if someone comes to me to plump up their lips enormously and I feel her face is too small to carry that look, I advise against it. 

Has social media changed expectations?
And how! That influence is all wrong. I have 10-year-olds sitting beside their mothers who are not allowed to utter a word, while they place in front of me all kinds of expensive serums and gels and ask how they can achieve the Korean glass skin…

You must be appalled…
More than that, I am worried. The child will destroy her skin by the time she is an adult. You don’t need all that. The pressure to look good in youngsters is terrible. I also have many clients who come with photographs of filmstars and ask can I make them look like that!

What are the necessary things one ought to practise?
Simple stuff; eat right, exercise, keep skin clean, apply a sun block every four hours. And please don’t worry. Stress is a game-changer. It can affect your skin, hair...

Have you ever woken up in the morning, looked at the mirror and said, "Oh my God, I need a good dermatologist!?"
Yes, absolutely! And then I land up in my clinic where the best trained doctors work on me and make me look like Cinderella before the carriage turned into a pumpkin and she lost her glass sandal! But seriously, I like my clients and me to look as natural as possible. The overdone face is quite a nightmare.

What is your philosophy on ageing?
Be graceful about it. Facials, laser treatments, fillers are all fine. Even structural enhancements are fine. But allow for facts to sink in, and accept if your external skin won’t support even a minimal invasive procedure. I advise a change in lifestyle, a change in diet and nutrition, first.

Are you a careful, conscious eater? 
Not in the least. But then I am blessed with a strong constitution and good metabolism. Look how much I am enjoying all the food Aamchee has laid out for us. I am okay with fried foods, too. I have no taboos and am a vegetarian by choice, but one who eats shrimps. I am a Mangalorean, remember.

That’s true. Your parents are Mangaloreans. Great food there.
Yes, I grew up eating good food. Never denied myself anything. Though my growing up was rather regimented, with a strong disciplinarian mum. I had to do everything right.

Do you cook?
Yes, love to, too. Don’t cook as much, unless my boys, Ashwin and Gaurav, now in their 40s make a request for some food their childhood memory has kicked up!

Five self-owned clinics in Bombay, one in Dubai, 13 franchise centres. You have earned your success and tremendous respect, so what next?
Did not come easy. I worked hard and long hours, even on Sundays. I lost Bhasker my husband, a doctor, 18 years ago and that was for me a sad and rough patch. I dealt with all my grief and concentrated on looking after my two boys. And you know what? Soon after, my work efforts and ethics paid off and I even acquired my first dream car – a Mercedes. I am content and thankful and now just aspire to continue doing what is my true calling, looking after people’s beauty needs.

Solkadhi to stay cool	Enjoying the spread at Aamchee	Aseem Dixit, Owner of Aamchee	Dhokla Toast with Guacamole Topping Recipe

About Aamchee

Helmed by Pinky Chandan Dixit and Aseem Dixit, founders of the iconic Gujarati eatery Soam, Aamchee offers a playful take on flavours that make Bombay's food one-of-a-kind. 

The menu, crafted by Anuradha Medhora of Charoli Foods, lets you savour dishes such as Gymkhana Corn Chowder, Matunga Rasam, East Indian Waffle Chaat, Desi Potato Fries, and other bites. 

End on a sweet note with the Vanilla and Hot Chocolate Sandwich. Pair your meal with refreshing spritzers and sodas.