She has helped women look beautiful sans apology and taught them that it is okay to look after and enhance one's physical beauty. Meet Dr. Jamuna Pai, cosmetologist and Managing Director of the ‘Blush' chain of cosmetic clinics, pioneer of Botox treatments in India, and fairy godmother to women who would not have discovered their true potential, had those pimples, scars and wrinkles still been playing havoc with their self-esteem!
However, the definition of beauty that Dr. Pai advocates and operates by is not just skin deep. “Beauty is an abstract concept and is bound to have multifarious tangents. While I do not fight the notion that ‘beauty lies in the eyes of the beholder', I feel that it is every woman's — or rather, every human being's — right to look beautiful. What I mean by ‘beautiful' is not just perfect features or a toned body but the sum total of all that along with emotional health as well. It is essential to be physically and emotionally healthy because these attributes lead to a sense of self-worth and confidence thus leading him/her to explore one's potential to the optimum.
Perfectionist traits
For Dr. Pai, personally, beauty has been a way of life since childhood. “I'm a born perfectionist, who needs to have everything immaculate — be it my home, my office or my personality. It was the same in childhood when I'd wash my own socks to clean them just right and would experiment with home-grown beauty techniques to perfect my appearance,” she recalls.
An accomplished student who took equal interest in multiple extra-curricular activities, Dr. Pai began her career as a Casualty Medical Officer at a Government hospital, moving to an infectious diseases hospital. For nine years, she worked at a Municipal Corporation Hospital as a doctor for school children. Post-marriage to Dr. Bhaskar Pai and the birth of her two sons (Dr.) Gaurav and Ashwin, Dr. Pai began general practice but “by then I was ready to push the envelope; do something unique but I was not getting a lead as to how exactly I could do that.”
The answer came when she accompanied a friend to a dermatologist's clinic. Looking at the pictures of acne-treated faces hung in the waiting room, Dr. Pai began wondering, “What happens to the scars/pits; the aftermath so to speak?” That opened up a new calling for Dr. Pai. Encouraged by her husband, she decided to combine her knowledge of medicine with her love for aesthetics and kickstart a revolutionary trend in the field of beauty and cosmetic medicine. She went to the U.K. to learn about aesthetiology. “I already had knowledge of medicine but I had to learn about beauty treatments to combine the two effectively.”
Dr. Pai returned to set up the first cosmetic clinic, Blush, in 1994. She was soon nominated to be a part of the Femina Miss India pageant panel and subsequently opened two more Blush clinics in Mumbai. Already on the highway to success, she added another feather to her cap in 2000, when Allergan India Pvt. Ltd approached her to introduce Botox via Blush.
Dr. Pai admits, “Initially it was a challenge to convince people that Botox is a safe and great cosmetic choice if administered the right way. There were quite a few misconceptions and horror stories floating around! But I guess my clients' faith in me bore fruit and we continue to have stupendous success in Botox treatments.” This was followed by the launch of Intense Pulsed Light Laser (IPL) Quantum Surgical Process and advanced techniques for Botox and Dermal Fillers.
Not unethical
However, while these procedures have given a new lease of life to many a sagging spirit; one cannot help but ask Dr. Pai about the ethics surrounding these treatments. She responds, “If done in the correct manner with the consent of the receiver and after giving her/him full knowledge about the procedure and its probable side-effects, there is nothing unethical. Personally, I never encourage these treatments if requested for the wrong reasons. For instance, I once had a couple request skin-lightening treatment for their nine-month-old daughter so that she would not face a problem in getting a groom later! Not only did I refuse but also explained that, instead of focussing on the baby's skin colour, if they let her excel in all spheres of life, she'd not need to depend on skin tone to get a husband.”
Then she reflects, “However, I don't blame them. The unfair truth is that, in order to survive cut-throat competition, one needs to be immaculately turned out. If that requires a little help from an aesthetician, it should not be considered unethical. However,I am a firm believer and practitioner of a healthy, wholesome lifestyle and I advocate the same to my clients as well. If one follows the right diet, sleep pattern and an overall balanced, holistic lifestyle, then one automatically begins looking good. These medical treatments only add that extra dollop, if required.”
Dr. Pai recently won the ‘Indira Gandhi Priyadarshini Award' for her contribution to the field and has now opened Dr. Jamuna Pai's Institute for Medical and Aesthetic Cosmetology “to cater to the growing demand for aesthetic medicine. The current base of 25, 000 procedures in skin care clinics reflect the immense scope in the field of aesthetic medicine coupled with a great demand in the domestic market and abroad” she says signing off.
