By Prashant Kumar
New Delhi, Jan 20 (IANS): If you are jealous of young Indian men sporting that perfectly-styled beard and wish to wear a perfect one to not only woo your lady but also join the latest "shapely beard" fad to impress friends on the social media, the time is just ripe for you.
According to cosmetic surgeons and skin specialists, the quest to catch up with the latest trend of growing and styling beard and moustache has, of late, inspired several young adults visiting them for that "perfect patch" of the facial hair involving medications and even surgical techniques.
"There is certainly a demand for a more sharpened beard these days. People do come to get their facial hair sharpened and shaped in order to attain that perfect rough look. Sharpening is done using laser treatments," said Dr. Anup Dhir, renowned specialist in cosmetic surgery at the Apollo Hospital in the capital.
According to experts, young men want to increase hair density, get rid of excessive hair on cheeks just below the eyes as well as neck and even get hair transplants in a few cases.
"A strong desire to look better than the rest is really forcing young men to make a beeline at cosmetic clinics across the country. Sporting beard and twirling moustaches are considered fashion statements nowadays. The trend seems to have come from the celebrities, including actors and cricketers," explained Dr. Rohit Batra, senior dermatologist at Sir Gangaram Hospital.
Batra gets 8 to 10 such cases per month and according to him, it has been three to four years that this trend is continuing and the frequency is increasing day by day.
"People come with high hopes and expectations. In most cases, youths want a luxuriant hair. Also, people with uneven hair growth come to get that perfect hair-do, which involves removal of unwanted hair and transplants," Batra told IANS.
Gone are the days when long moustaches and beards were associated with bad guys and girls fell for clean-shaven men. At least that is what several Bollywood movies tend to showcase, with actors like Ranveer Singh sporting a twirled moustache in his latest hit film "Bajirao Mastani".
For Dr. Navin Taneja, director of the National Skin Centre in the capital, the urge to look good on various social media platforms is responsible for this trend.
"Social networking sites have lately caught the fancy of the youngsters. In order to upload a perfect selfie on social media sites like Facebook and Instagram, one wishes to look stylish," Taneja noted.
Multiple independent surveys also claim that women find bearded men sexier than clean-shaven ones.
A recent survey by German consumer product company Braun that offers cutting-edge hair removal products, 53 percent of men actually feel more attractive to women when they have a beard while 41 percent feel more confident in general when they're sporting beards.
Hair-growing treatment includes hair transplant and platelet-rich plasma (PRP) treatment. These are opted by those who have less or no hair.
"The cost varies between Rs.35,000 and Rs.50,000 for hair transplant. A session each for the further PRP consultation is charged at Rs.10,000," Batra informed.
But one should consult the experts before taking any hormonal therapy.
"In some cases the serum testosterone is low which can be the cause of scanty beard, but in most of the cases it is genetically-determined. So, unnecessary over- medication is meaningless and one should not expect unrealistic results," Taneja warned.
Taneja, who claimed to have seen at least 140 such cases till date, also warned youth against opting for unnecessary medications to look good.
"Laser treatments are much easier than a complete beard transplant," Dhir suggested.
Meanwhile, keep the advice in concern and go get a trimmed bearded look to floor her!