What makes a star shine?

What do you get when you mix glam squads girl power Bollywood sets and a dash of manifestation magic Magic Salon of courseShraddha Naik and Nikita Menon arenrsquot just celebrity hair and makeup artists mdash theyrsquore the dream team behind some of the freshest fiercest faces in Bollywood Their journey started in 2019 on the sets of Saaho where Naik was on actor Shraddha Kapoorrsquos makeup duties and Menon was working her hair The vibes clicked instantlyldquoDespite our different personalities we hit it off immediatelyrdquo says Naik One film led to another and soon the duo were not just colleagues but chosen family ldquoWe practically lived with each other more than we lived with our families that time And today we are business partners togetherrdquo she addsTheir friendship has stood the test of time travel and tight shoot schedules mdash and now itrsquos morphed into Magic Salon a chic spot in Juhu where regular people can get the celebrity treatment You can get makeup and hair and lash treatments done straight from the women who doll up Bollywoodrsquos itgirls like Kiara Advani Suhana Khan and Ananya Panday or choose to get treatments from their team who have been trained to ldquomake you feel like a starrdquoldquoOne my first day at my hair academy my teacher asked me lsquoWhere do you see yourselves in 10 yearsrsquo My answer to that was as a brand I have always had the vision of starting my own brandrdquo says Menon That answer might have sounded like a daydream then mdash but a decade later itrsquos their realityFor Naik the push came from a lessthanglam experience at a popular makeup academy in India ldquoHe said very negative things about women that women canrsquot be makeup artists as they will never willingly make another woman look beautifulrdquo she recalls ldquoI was just 20 then I came home and cried and my father encouraged me to study abroad and I got a very good teacher in London My whys and hows were not answered in Indiardquo She believes that women can support women and glam each other up too Those answers mdash and plenty of lessons learnt mdash now fuel the duorsquos mission to run a salon that uplifts its clients and a team that works with heart ldquoWe have trained our team to make whoever sits in their chair feel like a celebrity We know how to People need to come to a salon with a feeling that something good will happen hererdquo says NaikForget judgmental stylists and snooty service At Magic yoursquore treated like yoursquore walking the red carpet mdash even if you just walked in for a brow threadThe duo poured their savings as well as a lot of hustle into bootstrapping Magic mdash personal investments a loan and support from their inner circleldquoI have been working since the age of 20 and my mom always taught me that if I earn R10000 I need to put R2000 in into an FD an RD or some savingsrdquo says Naik Menon adds that they were often secondguessed during the setup process especially while scouting rental spaces ldquoIt was a tough call but we believe very hard in our visionrdquo she says Magic Salon isnrsquot just a business mdash itrsquos a fullblown manifestation ldquoWe believe in manifestation and that magic is real if you believe in it and work hard thatrsquos why the namerdquo says NaikSo what makes a star shine Aside from talent charisma and camera angles itrsquos skincare Lots of it ldquoYou have to take care of your skin and every actor does this writer has seen many stars glow IRL at interviews and get a facial at least once a month once you cross 30rdquo says Naik Magic offers everything from facial massages and face yoga to express glowup masks for the timestarved ldquoSkincare is more important than makeuprdquo she addsBrows and lashes also get the Alist treatment Think brow lamination tinting and lash lifts mdash tiny details that elevate your look instantly ldquoLashes are such a small thing yet important to frame your facerdquo says Naik ldquoIf you donrsquot have the time a lash lift and tint means that you donrsquot have to do anything and have lifted lashes every day I feel less is more and we have the right solutions for yourdquoAs for hair Stars donrsquot skimp on treatments like Olaplex and K18 to repair all that styling damage says Menon ldquoSuch monthly treatments help rebuild broken bonds of your hair strands to avoid breakagerdquo says Menon They also colour their hair based on skin tone not just trendsNails Surprisingly lowkey ldquoStars prefer to go natural with soap or nude nails or chrome if feeling edgyrdquo says Naik Running a biz with your BFF isnrsquot all glitter and glam mdash but these two have cracked the codeldquoWe are best friends but we are very strongheaded and we have our own opinions of course we are aligned in the vision we have for our brand but as people we are very opposite An important lesson that we have learned is when we have differences we leave it sleep on it and come to a neutral decision the next dayrdquo says NaikAnd herersquos the golden rule ldquoIf you want to start a business with your best friend leave your ego out of the door Anything and everything you do has to be for the betterment of the brand and not yourdquo Menon sums upThe Lash Lift LowdownI never step out without mascara and after watching many stars flaunt naturallooking lifted lashes on Instagram I trusted Shraddha Naik to do her magic on meThe promise Mascaraready eyes for six to eight weeks without the daily struggleHeads up Yoursquoll be lying down eyes shut and phoneless for two hours A small price for lash luxury from a lash whisperer The process kicks off with a lash shampoo yes thatrsquos a thing followed by your lashes being gently glued onto a tiny silicone shield Enter the perm solution then tinting and you wait for 20 minutes between each stepBefore and After The writer gets a lash lift PicsDhara Vora SabhnaniThe real MVP moment is when the shields come off and your lashes are conditioned mdash we feel a sting here totally normal according to NaikThe result Lashes that look like theyrsquove been curled lifted and blessed by the mascara gods Zero clumps all glamAnd yes you can wear mascara just not the waterproof kindThe effect might just convert even the most committed lash curler addictThe service comes with a starry price tag too But hey mdash stars spend on their faces for a reason and this is the flirtiest my lashes have ever looked without mascara