For those of you with hair that imitate the hues of a rainbow, I salute you. Having crazy colored hair is more than just a fashion statement, for some it’s about sending a message. Here’s some things that every Pakistani girl with crazy colored hair has to go through.
The ghooriyan and scorn looks from judgmental aunties
As we all know, aunties are the bane of our existence. Their past times include chughlian, judgemental stares, whispering behind your back and making a mountain out of a molehill. More often than not, it’s aunties in public that seem to make me uncomfortable with their angry stares and even sneers. Guess they’ve never heard the phrase ‘Don’t judge a book by its cover.’ Whatevs, they hate us ‘cuz they ain’t us.
Jeerings of the younger crowd
I was just walking to class this one time, and some girl yelled, “Laal baaaal!” I was kind of amused, but then again, I have a demented sense of humor so most people might not take too kindly to such remarks. Another time, I was standing in line for something and this girl behind me said, “Iss ne koi colour chora bhi hai? Mor ke par jaise baal hain is ke.” To be fair, I think peacocks are beautiful so that didn’t seem to bother me too much. If you have crazy colored hair, be prepared to deal with people making fun of it, or even blank, creepy stares..
No sense of personal space
You go to the salon, you’re sitting in the chair waiting for whatever it is that you came for. Suddenly, you feel something in your hair. It’s the salon waali’s fingers. “Kahan se dye karwai hain?” “Asli baal hain?” “Yeh koi colour hai karwane wala?” “Hum bhi ye colour karte hain.” All these questions are just the tip of the iceberg, not only do they totally chaat your dimagh, but they also call over other women to poke and prod at your hair. I get that they’re curious and all, but dude, you need to learn what personal space is. Oh, did I mention all this happens without your explicit consent?
Little kids admiring your hair
This is where things start getting better. There’s always going to be kids admiring your hair, telling you that you look like one cartoon character or another. It’s almost sweet how sincere and non-judgmental children can be sometimes. This one girl I met at McDonald’s told me I looked like a fairy princess while I was busy shoveling McFlurry into my mouth. I looked nothing like a fairy princess, but she made my day.
Genuinely non-judgmental people complimenting you on your hair
It’s a free country (to a certain extent) and everyone is allowed to have an opinion about anything and everything that doesn’t involve religion. The same applies to your hair. There’s going to be people making fun of it and judging you for it, and then there’s people who genuinely think your hair is cool AF. The world is a very, very negative place so a little bit of positivity goes a long way. For every 5 people hating your hair, there’s going to be 1 person who likes it. Obviously, you’re not dying your hair to impress other people or to piss them off, you’re doing it for YOU. For some it’s a means of self expression, for others it’s a fashion statement. Whatever it is, don’t let other people’s opinions, whether positive or otherwise, affect your personal choices. You do you, girl.
Kluchit Staff
Ameera Mehmood
