Bollywood to Hollywood ,Shiva's Hairstyles Turn Heads

Pics: Inchara Digitals
Daijiworld Media Network – Udupi (SP)

Udupi, Apr 1: You will be surprised to know that Shivaram K Bhandary, a native of Attur in Karkala in the district, better known as ‘Shiva’ in glamour circles, had actually dropped out of school when studying in fifth standard because of poverty. ‘Shiva’, who lost his father at a tender age, had even taken to bicycle repair to support the family, when he was young.

Hairstyles created by Shiva have made global headlines and created ripples in fashion circles. His name recently appeared in popular magazines when he created a replica of the world cup out of the hair of a Mumbai girl named Sushma. His other creation which made him immensely popular, was the Octopus he conjured up from out of the hair of a lady from London, Sofiya Hayath. Still, only a few know that Shiva is from coastal Karnataka!

Shiva gave up schooling after reaching fifth standard, to support his mother, who was carrying the burden of running the family out of the meagre earnings as a daily wager. His mother had left Mumbai and returned to Attur out of the help of their Sangha, after his father died. He took to bicycle repairs for a living by working in such a shop at Palimar. After finding that the income from this work was too small to be of any consequence, he went to Balehonnur to work in his uncle’s salon. After working there for just eight months, Shiva went to Mumbai in search of greener pastures in 1979, when he was 14. He worked in two salons before visiting Qatar in 1984 by raising a loan. He worked there in Al Sadd Sports Club, where the manager provided his lot of encouragement. His hairstyling skills impressed a number of sportspersons and coaches hailing from different countries who frequented the club. He returned to Mumbai in 1988, and worked in a salon in Thane. He started his own salon at Mulund Mumbai in 1993, and has since opened three more in the metro.

Shiva has designed the hairstyles of famous Sandalwood, Bollywood and Hollywood stars, directors, producers, models and other well-known public figures. He has worked on the hairstyles of Madhur Bhandarkar, Neil Nitin Mukhesh, Tusshar Kapoor, Mugdha Godse, Vishal Bhardwaj, Soha Ali Khan, Urmila Matondkar, Maria Goretti, Sunil Lulla of Eros Entertainment, Babul Supriyo, Abbas Mastan, Anand Desai, Bhushan, Sandalwood stars, Upendra, Vishnuvardhan, Amruta Rao, Malashree, Bhavana, Anjana Sukhani, Shivani Kashyap and many more. Shiv Sena supremo, Bal Thackeray, and Smitha Thackeray are among his elite list of clients.

Shiva now has salons at Thane, Mulund, Lokhandwala in Andheri, apart from Juhu. He visits London, Italy, Germany, Singapur, Malaysia, Dubai, Kuwait, Bahrain etc., to provide hairstyles. He will be leaving for China on April 23 to show his talent at Fashion Asia Show there.

Shiva attended Vitasa Sun Advanced Course in hair designing and styling at London in 1998, and Tony and Guide Advanced Course in 2005. He won the Salon International Golden Award in 1998, Lions and Rotary Achievement Award, Bhandari Seva Samiti Award, Personality of the Year award instituted by Karnataka Sangha, among others. Shortly, he will receive Samaja Ratna award from Savita Samaj Udupi.

Shiva has recently set up ‘Shiva’s Salon Academy School’ for imparting his skills to younger generation. He has trained over a thousand people in this art so far. Shiva, who remains sober and simple in spite of his meteoric success, says that the secret of his success lies in quick adaptation to changing fashions.