Pooja Mehta, founder of Makiaj, is a beauty entrepreneur specializing in South Asian and Western bridal looks. Trained in Paris, she launched her company in 2011, blending tradition with innovation. Her focus on artistry and emotional connections has transformed the bridal beauty industry. She re-imagines the beauty industry with innovation and creativity, specializing in both South Asian and Western bridal looks. Her vision for the future is to inspire creativity, build confidence, and shape the next generation of beauty professionals worldwide.
A South Asian Journey from Detroit to a Life Shaped by Art
I was born and raised in Detroit, Michigan to a South Asian family. Both of my parents are from East Africa. We’re Gujarati, and I grew up with two sisters. I was the middle and as they say, about middle kids were a little different than the other two, and I was always quite artistic. As a child, I loved painting, ceramics and dancing, and that has really shaped the woman that I’ve grown up into today, and Art has always been a really big part of my life.
Paris: How Studying in the Beauty Capital Keeps Me Ahead of Trends
As you know, Paris, France is the hub of everything fashion and beauty related. And when I had the choice to go and study somewhere, I decided I wanted to go to the mecca of beauty, fashion and makeup. So that had given me a very unique opportunity to stay ahead of the trend here in the United States.
How I Transformed My Passion for Beauty into a Bridal Empire
Being an Indian woman I had always thought I wanted to go down the route of being a physician, and I really was interested in dermatology and really wanting to help people transform their skin. It had a lot to do with me and wanting to transform my skin and wanting to look and feel beautiful. I decided not to go the medical route, and to go into beauty. I can transform women in less than an hour and a half with makeup. I don’t have to wait for medicine to work. I wanted to see the dramatic transformation of women and be able to feel that. So in 2010 when I returned from Paris, I decided to start my own company. I named the company Makiaj, which means makeup in French. I said, I’m going to make bridal makeup cool again. And being a woman of color and being Indian, I started to attract all of these Indian brides. They trusted me in their appearance, and now here we are, 15 years later, and it has been quite the journey, after thousands of weddings of both South Asian women and also modern Western brides.
Modernizing Tradition for Today’s Brides
When I see a woman’s face, I already know how they will look their best, and it doesn’t matter what skin tone they are. What I found was that 20-30 years ago, when Madhuri Dixit was on the Bollywood screen you’d see a lot of red eye shadow, a lot of gold, a lot of green. That is part of the Indian culture. However, how do we bring that and modernize it and allow those Indian, South Asian women that are living in the United States to also feel fresh and modern like all the other brides, but also hold on to the culture and the tradition that is so highly revered by our community. These modern looks are monochromatic browns, really deep, rich golds, a lot more complementary to their skin tone and really for their complexion. It’s about evening out and balancing all of the yellow and green and purple undertones in South Asian skin. So it was really about accentuating and not overdoing the makeup, and that is what I became really well known for at Makiaj.
Making Every Girl’s Dream A Reality
In the South Asian culture, we have several events that are important to us. We’ve got haldi, chura ceremony, sangeet, all of these different events. It’s really a time for South Asian women to be able to celebrate their beauty, their looks, their style, and really emanate from the inside out. What is it that they want to look and feel like without any structural norms? It is really time for them to play and be that Princess. It’s every girl’s dream. I feel something we do well at Makiaj is we really blend the modern makeup look with tradition.
Current Trends for Classic Elegance
Trends change so fast, especially makeup trends. There’s a big boom happening right now in the beauty industry. We’ve got a lot of celebrities and influencers coming out with makeup lines – Selena Gomez, Hailey Bieber, and a lot of influential people. The trends come and go. I like to keep things as classic and monochromatic as possible. Right now, what we’re seeing is a lot of barely-there natural makeup, which doesn’t quite work for the South Asian bride, given that there is a lot of nuances to the complexion that we need to take into account. I feel most South Asian women have beautiful complexion. It’s just about accentuating the areas and maybe covering up, some dark circles or other hyper pigmentation. We have those bigger eyes, naturally, fuller eyebrows, all of that. So it’s really about accentuating
Styled Shoots Fuel My Entrepreneurial Spirit
I think the more I’ve moved into a business woman position, an entrepreneur in my company, I let go of one rope, and then hold on to one. And then I realized that the other rope is so far behind. So it’s really about carving out time to be creative. So I will plan styled shoots where I can just dream up the most beautiful, elegant brides and makeup and hair. I bring in a model, a photographer, unique clothes, and I just play because that is how I became so creative in this industry to begin with. That’s how I became successful. I would never let go of that creative muscle. I needed to keep coming back to it, because that fueled the business and the entrepreneur side of me.
Balancing Emotions and Technique
As artists, we have this part of our brain that is overactive, which is the emotional side, because it allows for more neuro connectivity, to think outside of the box, and that is what inspires a lot of our artistry. However, balancing the two can get quite tricky, because you’re with somebody on their wedding day, and if you’re an empath, you can feel what the client is feeling. So if they’re nervous, you’re taking on their nerves. If they’re excited, you’re taking on their excitement. This requires any artist, to really hone in on their technical skills, so that no matter what emotions arise that day, you’ve got the technicality part of it. I feel the artists who are emotional already have the ability to connect with their clientele in a deep way. I believe that one of the most unique parts about me is the ability to connect so deeply with my clients while I’m working with them, and also be able to execute a pretty technically sound application.
Beauty Business in the Digital Age
There’s a really beautiful aspect of social media that allows everybody to connect, and it allows people to have an audience or a community. It’s not about followers anymore. It has become about creating community and nurturing community. I do believe that as a positive now. Areas that I feel like we might lack is when Artificial Intelligence starts to take over more and more of the beauty arena, and we are going to see that in the next four or five years in a rampant way. So we’ve got great things about digital and we’ve got some things to be wary about. The thing that comes to mind first for me is to allow others to be confident in a digital space. And I believe lighting and the way we look affects the way we feel, and it affects the way we show up. And so lighting has always been, and is becoming even more of a passion of mine, and where I believe we can show up in the digital space, in our most authentic self.
Staying Grounded Amidst a Busy Life
Meditating, lot of self reflection, lot of journaling, and then working out. I feel that has really helped me stay very grounded. I’m really into health and fitness. It’s become a big passion of mine. And so really staying up with that, really mentally checking where I’m at so that I can live a bigger, more fulfilling, open life.
Quick Fire Beauty Tips
Makeup product for a flawless bridal look?
Depends on the skin type and tone. My three favorites right now for South Asian clientele – Giorgio Armani Luminous Silk Foundation, Dior Backstage Foundation, and Haus Labs Foundation by Lady Gaga.
Matte or dewy finish for brides
Depends on their skin. If they’re dry, I want something glowy. If they’re glowy, I want something matte to be able to control the longevity of the product over eight hours. But a nice happy medium for me right now is satin. I love satin finish on the skin.
Bold lips or soft neutrals for a wedding day?
Depends on the bride. My personal favorite for actual ceremony would be a color. I’m really big into color because right now, eyes have become a lot more subdued and not as heavy as they used to be. I really like a nice painted burgundy red, maybe wine color for the lip.
How do you ensure long-lasting makeup for all-day events?
The way that I layer on complexion, it’s not just one layer, it’s like six layers, but all extremely thin. So by the time you’re really in front of that heat or maybe you’re outside sweating in the sun, any little bit of oil that’s produced or sweat, actually ends up looking good on the skin. It helps bring the skin back to life.
One bridal makeup trend you love right now?
I’d say the blush. I feel women have been so afraid of blush for so many years. Blush is really about being and looking feminine, flirty and fun. And so I love that blush has come back into style, especially for Indian brides, because they’re competing with these bright outfits.
Favorite eye makeup style for a traditional South Asian bride?
I love a smudged out brown liner that starts in the lash line and extends out very softly and very minimal shadow in the crease, just allow the eye to look really elongated. Then beautiful individual lashes, on top of their natural lash.
How do you approach makeup for outdoor weddings?
We use all types of primers these days. There’s one trick – milk of magnesia. They’ve been using that for years. I learned it years ago from Jennifer Lopez’s makeup artist, Scott.
The key to achieving a natural yet glam bridal look?
Really good skincare. Brides have an expectation of what they want. However, it’s not realistic without really good skin care. That starts six to nine months before the wedding day. And it’s a lot about exfoliation and hydration. That is how the skin becomes supple, and how people can wear a natural look and still look beautiful and great.
Top tip for brides prepping their skin before the big day?
One of the big things is Weleda Skin Food. It’s incredible, and it hydrates the skin. Also good amount of exfoliation.
PQs
“When I see a woman’s face, I already know how they will look their best, and it doesn’t matter what skin tone they are.”
“It’s really a time for South Asian women to be able to celebrate their beauty, their looks, their style, and really emanate from the inside out. It is really time for them to play and be that Princess.”
“Something we do well at Makiaj is we really blend the modern makeup look with tradition.”
