Deepika’s down-to-earth, respectful and classy: Gabriel Georgiou

Deepika Padukone’s gorgeous mane in recent films has been courtesy international hairstylist Gabriel Georgiou. Deepika has received a fabulous response to her looks in Bajirao Mastani and Tamasha, and Gabriel told us exactly how he achieved those two distinctive looks.

Incidentally, Gabriel came to India when he was invited to, by his agency, because he’s always been “up for adventure”. It proved to be a good decision since he’s worked with everyone from Priyanka Chopra to Kajol, Freida Pinto, Kangana Ranaut, Aishwarya Rai, Katrina Kaif, Anushka Sharma, Kareena and Karishma Kapoor, Alia Bhatt and Deepika of course, since then. With Katrina, Gabriel worked on Jab Tak Hai Jaan, on Bombay Velvet with Anushka, and with Deepika on the song Lovely from Happy New Year (as well as a few re-shoot days for the film).

Of working back-to-back on Tamasha and Bajirao Mastani with Deepika, Gabriel says, “I’ve been working with Deepika for approximately two years now and it’s a joy and we have a great relationship. She is a really respectful and down-to-earth girl, classy and a pleasure to work with. She is also open to trying many different looks and no matter what look — whether a more glamorous one or a more street/easy chic — she always looks beautiful.”

Telling us more about Deepika’s looks in Tamasha and Bajirao Mastani, Gabriel says, “In Tamasha, Deepika looks fresh, girly, and real! The looks are all modern, textured, sexy and raw. Mastani is an old world beauty, but still treated with realism — meaning that the hair is not too over done. It’s more real looking as it would have been at the time where long hair was worn in braids or left as is taken out of braids. So the approach was definitely more Hollywood. Tamasha is a modern romantic film so the looks are more modern and carefree — like ponytails and textured buns etc. Bajirao Mastani, being a period film, is inspired from old Indian paintings and portraits.”

How to get Deepika’s look from Bajirao Mastani “My favourite look from Bajirao Mastani is the long, textured hair look from the song Deewani Mastani. The look needs very long hair. If you don’t have long hair you can use long extensions and the easiest to use are the clip-in ones. Keep the roots straight and start your braids from approximately above the ear area, all the way down. Once you have lots of braids, the thickness can differ. Leave them for a few hours or sleep with them overnight! When you undo them you will have the texture. Then if you want to perfect the look, use a thin tong to curl the front and side areas — again curling the hair in sections towards the back and finishing at approximately behind the ears. Piece out with spray and blend into the rest of the hair,” says Gabriel.

How to get Deepika’s Tamasha look Gabriel says, “My favourite look from Tamasha is the signature done-but-undone textured waves. Now for the first look, here are some simple steps: Use a medium to big curling tong and curl towards the back in thick sections until you reach the mid-back of the head. Then either lean your head backwards or forwards depending on what’s more comfortable, shake it out and spray really well. Then, piece sections of the hair out and spray to create lots of texture. Now if you want to complete the whole Boho look, all you need is a wreath — and there you have it!”