‘John Abraham is a dream canvas to work with’: Brothers Micky and Vikas Malani on designing tattoos for the actor in Pathaan

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And that’s something that piqued our interest, too. For instance, one of the most popular tattoos drawn on the back of his hand read, “Everyone will come to my funeral to make sure I stay dead”. Quirky, right? In fact, many fans even took to social media to point out the uniqueness of the tattoo. Which is why we decided to reach out to the artists who created the actor’s tattoos.

“The ideas of the tattoos were based on his character in the film. The whole process of designing, trials to seal the final ones took almost two months,” said Micky Malani of BodyCanvas Tattoos & Piercing, who along with his brother Vikas and their team designed the tattoos.

John Abraham in Pathaan (Source: Pathaan)

Recalling their first sitting for the tattoos, Micky recollected, “We had brought quite a few references, basis the description given to us about John’s character in the film. We were pleasantly surprised to see that John’s team had also brought in quite a lot of options. So, all of us joined forces to finalise distinctive designs that haven’t been seen before in a Bollywood movie!”

Other designs that caught equal attention were a compass on his right forearm with the coordinates for the city of Mumbai; there was ‘Family’ with a heartbeat motif to show what family meant to him; and a cross on his finger. “There was also ‘PATRIOT’ emblazoned on his neck to reference his past as an agent and his love for the country. For his massive sleeve tattoo, there is a clock, eagles and roses design which depict his strong, macho persona in the movie,” described Vikas.

The duo and their team are elated at the fact that it is the first time their entire team was mentioned in the film credits despite providing tattoo services for over two decades. “We want to thank Yash Raj Films for giving us a platform that makes us and our work feel respected and valued. It is about time tattooing got the recognition it deserves in Bollywood,” shared Vikas.

John sports tattoos in the film (Source: Pathaan)

At this stage, despite having multiple studios in India and one in London, Micky shared that this achievement “felt much bigger”. Micky further revealed that YRF “changed my belief about working with a production house and the big stars”. “Making sure that our name was there in the end credits and recognising our efforts is huge for us. After two decades of working in the industry and with some of the biggest stars and production houses, it was the first time I saw our names on the 70mm screen in a film. This feeling is beyond words that one can express,” shared Micky.

Was John a sport when it came to getting the tattoos made? John was by far the best we have worked with, the brothers expressed. “From taking care of the tattoos, and following every instruction, he is a dream canvas to work with,” Micky told indianexpress.com.

Describing John as one of the most humble, generous and hardworking actors, Vikas said, “He was involved in the entire process and followed all the guidelines shared with him. He took time to visit our studio for multiple trials, mingled with the team and happily clicked fun photographs with his fans whenever they asked. We must say, working with John was one of the best experiences ever.”

Prod them about their favourite tattoo, and the duo almost unanimously say, “The one on the back of his palm was his (John’s) favourite, and so was ours. The words were so powerful, I think only he could have pulled that off,” expressed Micky.

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