Looking Good
The ‘burqa’ is a common sight in Afghanistan – but there is a lot behind the veil.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sjeghnF2npQ
Filmmaker: Ruhi Hamid
With the Taliban gone, the anonymous blue veil remains a common sight on Afghanistan’s uneasy streets – but with the make up underneath: anything goes. Humera beauty salon is in Kabul’s blossoming beauty district. The salon’s director, Nadia Husseini, worked in Pakistan during the Taliban but now she is happy to be running a thriving business in Kabul.
Friday is a busy day in the salon, with women wanting to look their best at the start of society’s wedding season. Customers come in and out all day, with scarcely time for the beauticians to take a tea break.
Pikai Asghari is hosting her nephew’s engagement party that evening and her in-laws are coming to stay – the eponymous blue burka provides the perfect cover for Pikai’s gradual transformation – she’s able to dash home to prepare the feast with her hair still in curlers.