Tattoos – the new sign of love?

Everyone from Saif Ali Khan to Sanjay Dutt, Yuvraj Singh and MS Dhoni seem to be declaring their love in ink, discovers Ismat Tahseen

In an era of jet setting lifestyles, fast cars and faster love, it’s not surprising that good ol’ fashion romance is being revolutionised and refurbished too.

The days of saying it in three words now seem passé with the likes of Saif Ali Khan showing that if you really love someone, go out there and get her name inked on your body.

Khan, of course, is showing off his tattoo with Kareena in a Devnagari script, while macho man Sanjay Dutt also recently got himself a Maanyata tattoo on his forearm.  

The actors join the likes of Hollywood stars David and Victoria Beckham, actors Angelina Jolie and Melanie Griffith, singer Amy Winehouse among others, all of whom have expressed their desires in ink. 

So, is the tattoo the new love sign? “It’s called partner marking,” reveals celebrity tattoo artiste Sameer Patange, adding, “An over-the-top way to show I really, really, really care about you.”

The hot designs include tribal patterns, dragons, butterflies, floral  and religious designs too, with stars like Esha Deol emblazoning a ‘gayatri mantra’ on their bodies..

But with the niceties of the body art come a price. A basic tattoo costs Rs 2500 and goes on to Rs 30,000 and above, depending on the design. 

The artiste, who has inked designs on Sanjay Dutt, Urmila Matondkar, Rohit Roy, Anil Kapoor, Salman Khan, Irrfan Khan, Anita Raj and Kim Sharma, says tattoos themselves are no recent phenomenon with Egyptian mummies having shown evidence of body art.

“But now that Saif has a name tattoo, it’s become the most romantic thing to do and everyone from Shoaib Akhtar, Yuvraj Singh, Hemang Badani, and MS Dhoni have asked for one.”

But while tattooing your partner’s name on your body may be a declaration of undying love, it can also become an embarrassment when the relationship goes kaput. “We have the same people coming back to us, wanting to get them covered,” reveals Sameer.

Model Deepti Gujral hopes to be crazily in love at some point in future and get a tattoo for the one she loves, but actor Riya Sen is put off with the idea of tattooing anyone else’s name on herself but her own!

“My parents have been against the idea of a tattoo, they think it’s not classy, but what I am secretly planning is to put the royal emblem of my father’s family as my tattoo (since he is of the royal family of Tripura, Cooch Behar and Baroda) and then they will probably be less angry,” she laughs.

Dino Morea is also keen on a tattoo. “I’d want an eagle,” he says, adding, “I’d get a tattoo for my partner, but only if it was true love. Of course, it would also depend on the situation,” he muses. And like Arjun Rampal who has a tattoo of his children’s names, Dino Morea hopes to follow suit someday with a similar tattoo.

Looks like the adage might better be read: The way to a person’s heart should be through his tattoo.
t_ismat@dnaindia.net