Adding a dash of colour

Under the arc lights on the sets of Sankha Sindura, Khirod Panda dabs thick bronze foundation with his fingertips on the most famous face of tinsel town - Aparajita Mohanty. With unerring skill, he penciled kohl on her eyelids and added a tinge of rouge on the cheeks. As Aparajita faced the camera and came alive on the big screen, she charmed thousands of audience and remained the cynosure of Odia film industry for ages to come. But the hands that made the face ethereal through his craftsmanship, remained eclipsed. Makeup artists like Khirod, still among the less acknowledged people in the film industry, add that glamour quotient to the actors and actresses.At 22 years of age, Khirod worked in Sankha Sindura (1985) as an independent make-up artist. Today, 27 years later, Khirod is considered the most sought after make-up artist in the industry with over 80 films to his credit. He has not only worked with Aparajita but been the favourite of  veterans like Mahesweta Ray, Uttam Mohanty, Sriram Panda, Prashant Nanda and Bijay Mohanty.Khirod had no prior training of make-up and learnt the tricks of the trade on the job, by being assistant to many senior make up artists in the industry. Prior to Sankha Sindura, Khirod had worked as an assistant to senior make-up artist of Tollywood late Trilochan Pual for Odia film Ramayan in 1980, directed by Govind Tej. Before joining the industry, Khirod worked for his own  make up house Konark Chitralaya in Cuttack where he worked mostly on theatre artistes. But he sold it off in 1995 to concentrate on his Ollywood career. “I was  fascinated with colours and would keep trying different colour combinations. My drawing and painting skills were not all that fantastic, so I started experimenting with make-up,” he reveals, adding, “If the technique is correct, make-up can make anyone look good.” Post Sankha Sindura,  more  films assignments started coming his way. He has also been the personal make-up artiste of many a stars.Khirod has also rendered his expertise for several albums, TV serials and award shows. “Working with celebrities isn’t difficult as they trust me,” he smiles."Make-up, particularly for the eye can completely transform the look of a person. You need to master the art of colour combinations and also learn the correct technique of blending colours,” he explains.Financially, being a make up artist was never lucrative till recently. ‘’It improved a lot after formation of the film technicians association in 1992 after which we started getting good remuneration for our work,” says Khirod. But sadly, make up artists have not got recognition in the film award ceremonies.  “Best make-up was added to the State Award category only last year,” Khirod laments.Some of his popular films include Maa, a  bilingual film by Prashant Nanda, Goja Baiyani, Om Shanti Om, Thili Jhia Heli Bohu, Sabata  Maa, Pathara Khasuchi Bada Deulu, Lakhe Shiva Puji Paichi Pua and the recent ones Thukool and Raja  Jhia Sange Hei Gala Bhaba (which will be releasing soon).