Visiting Ajarn Noo Kanpai, who tattooed Brad and Ange with their incredible new designs, Andy bravely agreed to have a double tiger inked on his back by Thailand’s most famous tattoo guru.
Now, he tells his story to Woman’s Day:
“I wanted it done because he uses an old technique with the bamboo and needle, and because he is such a master – he is the originator of many of the most popular ancient designs in Thailand.
Ajarn Noo Kanpai prepares his bamboo and needle tattoo implement for Andy’s new ink. Photo: Karl Larsen/Coleman-Rayner
Prices start at $300, but he is a spiritual guru and if he likes a person, and they can prove they are of good morals, he sometimes comes to an agreement.
I was nervous going in and the studio is filled with lots of religious figures and iconography, but the people there make you feel at ease.
Even waiting your turn, you have to sit cross-legged and face forward, you must never turn your back on the tattoo master.
You can tell Ajarn Noo is very serious about what he does. He sits in the room on a little stage like a Buddhist monk.
He has an aura about him, too. He is very charismatic. It’s easy to see why Angelina likes him.
Woman’s Day uncovered these images of Ajarn with Brad Pitt, plus Angelina’s fresh ink.
All the other people who were there were Thai. Some had travelled for a few hours to meet Ajarn Noo, and even the youngest girls, barely in their 20s, didn’t flinch while being tattooed, so I had to “man up” and not look scared.
Firstly, the image you have chosen is pasted onto your skin so that Ajarn Noo can trace the image. The first time the needle went in was like being stung by a wasp and yes, it did hurt.
Andy admits the tattoo “stung”. Photo: Karl Larsen/Coleman-Rayner
But the worst thing was sitting cross-legged on a hard floor as the tattooing was carried out. My legs were hurting a lot!
Ajarn Noo blesses you after it is finished. He then advises eating a vegetarian diet for three days afterward.
The finished product. Photo: Karl Larsen/Coleman-Rayner
I was really pleased to get tattooed by him, there’s certainly an air of ceremony and spirituality you don’t have at most western tattoo parlours.”
To read Andy’s exclusive story about Brad and Ange’s romantic Buddhist tattoos, etched in the same ink as a symbol of their love, click here.
