A youth gets his tattoo removed at Laser Clinic at Dakbungalow roundabout in Patna. Picture by Nagendra Kumar Singh

It’s becoming a trend among today’s youth to get their tattoo removed.

And, a number of clinics have come up to cater to this need. Depending on the nature and size of tattoo, the removal can sometimes cost more, but the young do not seem to mind.

Ratan Sharma of Patna Cosmetic and Laser Clinic on Frazer Road said: “The tattoo removal machine serves multiple purposes. When we installed it, we weren’t sure we’d get so many clients. But, we deal with 10 such cases a week.”

Wondering why would one want a tattoo removed? Sharma says: “Most of our clients are men who want it off as they want to apply for a job, mainly in the police, CRPF or military. Then, there are youngsters who want to erase the name of an ex-flame. And then there are those who are bored with the old tattoo and want a new one.”

Family pressure, too, are a reason sometimes. Abhilasha Sinha of Patna Women’s College, said: “About five years ago, when I was in college I got a tiny butterfly inked on my right arm. It was a novelty on the campus. But at the time of my engagement, I had to go to Delhi to get it removed, as sought by my in-laws.”

Rahul Sinha of Saguna Mor, said: “When I was in Delhi University, I got a skull tattooed on my neck. But when my parents were visiting, they scolded me and I had to get it removed.” Jishant Mayank, a student of International School, said: “When I went to Bangalore, I got a permanent pentagram tattoo on my hand. But I have not been able to take proper care of it and it has got smudged. It should go off.”

Sharma said: “The cost of removing a tattoo depends on the area to be cleansed. It is measured by the number of times the laser beam strikes the skin. If a tattoo requires 200 laser shots, each shot costing Rs 100, then the cost of the entire session is Rs 20,000.”

The results are not immediate. It takes 40-50 days. Mahipal Krishna, owner of a tattoo centre, said: “We also cover up unwanted tattoos. We have received over 50 cases where clients wanted names of their ex-flames removed.”

However, the craze for tattoos remains. Maishkin Malick, a Class XI student of St Karen’s Secondary School, said he wants a Scorpio tattoo on his palm. Asked if plans to remove it in future, he said: “Of course not.”

Krishna said: “Youths as well as men over 30 come to us to get themselves inked. The elderly go for religious signs, the young want something out of the box.”

Mahipal Krishna, owner of Wild Ink tattoos, said: “For a monochrome tattoo, the cost is Rs 1,000 for the first square inch and Rs 400 each for every additional square inch.

“In case of getting a coloured tattoo, the first square inch costs Rs 1,500 and every additional square inch Rs 600 each. If one is getting a star tattooed it may be accommodated in just 1 square inch, but names require up to 4 square inches or more.” So, a 4 square-inch monochrome name tattoo would cost Rs 2,200.

Sheetal of Patna Cosmetic and Laser Clinic, says: “The number of laser shots required to delete a tattoo depend on the depth of the tattoo, the ink used, skin type and the area occupied by the tattoo. If the tattoo is spread over 4 square inches on the arm, then about 200 laser shots would be needed to remove it. It can be more or less even, depending on the factors stated earlier”.

So, removing a 4 square inch tattoo could cost Rs 20,000.