Former 'Idol' contestant Sanjaya performs at Woodbury bat mitzvah

BY ANNE BRATSKEIR | Special to Newsday

March 9, 2008

Sanjaya Malakar gives a hug to Rachel Lader of Woodbury after they both get their hair cut and styled at nuBest Salon and Spa in Manhasset. Sanjaya sang at the girl's Bat Mitzvah. (Newsday / Julia Gaines / March 8, 2008)

The last time former " American Idol" contestant Sanjaya Malakar, 18, got his lustrous locks shorn was in April 2007. But yesterday, the lanky teen, known for being among Idol's worst yet most beloved finalists, got the royal treatment at chic hairdo hub NuBest Salon & Spa in Manhasset.

Arriving at noon with his hair pulled into a tight topknot, Malakar was impressed with the glitzy salon. "It's great. It's beautiful. I've never been to a salon like this."

He was readying for another first. Last evening, he would entertain at 12-year-old Rachel Lader's black-tie, 300-guest bat mitzvah at Oheka Castle in Huntington. She planned to donate her bat mitzvah gifts to charities including Best Buddies, Willie Randolph Foundation, Realizing The Dream and DeWayne Murcer Memorial Foundation.

"No, I've never done a bat mitzvah before," said a smiling Malakar, who planned to serenade the Woodbury girl with "Isn't She Lovely" during her first dance with daddy. Afterward, it would be "You Really Got Me," which he sang twice on "Idol," once with Aerosmith guitarist Joe Perry.

Malakar, who relocated from Seattle to Los Angeles with sister Shyamali and a cousin to work on music, says life after "Idol" is "a whirlwind. While you're on it, it moves so fast. But afterwards, you can kind of sit back and see what happens."

He did sit back as his famous hair was handled by at least three stylists including Jamie Mazzei, who trimmed 2 1/2 inches and worked with a razor to "accentuate the natural curl." Stylist Glen Davis tried out a version of Malakar's "faux hawk," but Malakar's publicist nixed it, saying it was "old Sanjaya." He left with a classic free-floating mane courtesy of salon owner Michael Mazzei. An MTV crew, working on a segment about catching up with Sanjaya one year after "Idol," documented the whole scene.

Malakar isn't the only big name on the guest list. Rachel, whose theme was "Rachel's Red Carpet," planned to make her entrance flanked by Giants Super Bowl champs Brandon Jacobs and Osi Umenyiora, and song duo Ashford and Simpson were slated to appear as well. Her dad, Spencer Lader, who until recently ran a sports memorabilia company, said nobody was being paid to appear. "I have a lot of connections," said Lader. "And Rachel's going to be giving all of her gifts to charity. We do want this to be a very special day, but it also allows us to learn a lesson about those who have less and those who need."