Body piercing: The art of doing it right

Dance is a profession that many a times needs showing off of one’s body. Especially in the western dance world one sees a lot of skin on display. Wearing short and exposing cloths, body suits, displaying naked shoulders and mid riff is a common thing for a dancer. This makes a dancer go an extra mile to enhance the body part with tattoos or piercings.  

Many dancers today love body piercing; I too call myself one of the many I will agree. Few years back, I was invited to perform at the closing ceremony of the prestigious World Economic Forum at Davos, Switzerland. My performance was watched and praised by who is who from the world of business and politics. In the audience were former President of United States Bill Clinton, former French President Nicolas Sarkozy, Ambanis, Hindujas, Mittals and many more wellknown names. Excited and elated by all the praise and cheers I got for my dance, I decided to treat myself with a piercing as a memory of Switzerland and the performance at the world economic forum. I decided to decorate my body with an eyebrow pierce. I will admit that I was lucky not to develop any infection or pain, but at the same time I know of many dancers who have gone through a lot due to the body decoration and piercing. Often dancer gets inspired by Hollywood and Bollywood icons and their body decorations. Celebrity piercing has always interested paparazzi and fans. Stars adore going under the piercing gun, be it movies stars, prominent musicians, supermodels — they all just can’t resist the attraction of having something pierced. In Hollywood, from Lady Gaga to Britney Spears from Rihanna to Janet Jackson — all have piercing. Here in Bollywood, be it Bipasha Basu, Priyanka Chopra, Katrina Kaif or even Salman Khan, all have decorated their bodies with one or more piercings. So it is not very surprising when a dancer opts for a piercing too.

Body piercing has come a long way from the traditional earlobes to nose piercing. Now a days, many dancers have a piercing of the belly button, eyebrow, lips and even tongue, chin and nipples. With personal experience, I can say that any piercing needs care in the initial days to avoid infection, which can lead to severe pain and other complications if not given attention to.

Many dancers impulsively opt for piercing without taking a note of their skin type, proper sterilisation and information about the post-piercing care. Lack of hygiene, lack of proper sterilisation of the area and the piercing gun or the needle are the common reasons why pierced area catch infections. Also there are many dancers who have sensitive skin and when they clean the pierced area with antiseptic, they get irritant eczema.

While piercing the earlobes and eyebrows result in common complications, nose and naval infections can sometimes be fatal too.

One should avoid visiting random piercing shops and opting for experienced hands. Cheaper shops are not usually hygiene conscious. Also, a medical expert charges a steep price. But, one should keep in mind that he/she will take all the necessary precautions.

Sandip Soparrkar is a well known Latin and Ballroom dancer, a World Book of Records holder and a Bollywood choreographer who has been honoured with National Achievement Award and National Excellence Award by the Govt of India. He can be contacted on sandipsoparrkar06@gmail.com