How recently did the bob cut make a fashion statement? The thirties? The sixties? If youre talking about India, youd have to begin with 6th century BC, actually. What about the ubiquitous jooda? This gift from Greece sparked off a rage in India during the reign of the Guptas circa 320 to 550 AD.
And as for the demure plait and that teenyboppers delight, the ponytail both were local hairstyles exclusively sported in Mathura and Nagarjunakonda aeons of years ago.
Not everything off the tops of our heads has an Indian patent on it, though. Curly hair isnt Indian it was a product of the Greek and Roman influence that was assimilated by 4th century hairdoers, as depicted in Gandhara art. We owe intricate hair nets to the same sources as well.
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But those retro styles, the beehive and the bouffant, the poodle cut and frizzy hair, are what you might call national treasures, says 73-year-old Veena Shroff, who has spent the last 40 years breathing life into the feminine coiffures frozen in ancient stone.
Shroff says that thousands of hair designs were captured in Indian sculpture and painting. And this love affair with their locks wasnt restricted to women men showed off their manes just as much. Chinese traveller Huien Tsang commented on the hairstyles that men fancied: Some clip their moustaches while others have fantastic designs...
In the 20th century where your hairstyle is shorthand for your race and gender status, Shroff is clearly happy to spend her life combing the past. In an age where hairstyles by computer are catching on, Shroffs happiest when shes gussying up locks according to the vision of ancient artisans, and filling in the gaps where the artists chipping gave way.
Its not as if I always copy directly from ancient statues. I try to give my own interpretation as well, and sometimes give new names to designs I stumble upon that adorn an obscure nameless statues. There are so many hair styles carved by our old artisans, probably over a lakh of them, my God, it is not easy for anybody to say I have seen it all, she laughs.
But shes seen enough to make her hair stand on end already. In her spacious living room, Shroff spreads out the evidence of her passion for our crowning glory across the marble table. Assorted combs, hair tassels, hair festoons, hair nets, hair pins, hair-knot easers and lice removers tumble out of old cigar cases and paper shoe boxes. Apart from the 700-odd antique hair ornaments she has collected from different parts of the country, she possesses hundreds of other prized pieces.
One of her favourites is the half-an-inch-long Maharashtrian metal comb with fine, thin teeth, several two-forked, but heavy, decorative brass tongs to untangle hair knots, a seven-in-one comb from Gujarat and a brass, instead of a glass, mirror!
For sheer ingenuity, its hard to beat wide sandalwood comb from the south. Two sets of teeth are spaced on both sides, and drilled into it are two tiny buttons on either side. You fill up one button with oil and the other with itar, so that when you comb your hair with one side your gets oil, while combing it from the other nourishes it with itar, explains Shroff.
The grand dame of hair explains how you get the beady dots on statue heads. Thats simple. Twirl some hair around and fix it with beeswax. And what in the world is a kesapa? Hair combed sideways, roundish bun with a knot on the nape of the neck.
These questions have entertained hundreds in the 5,000-plus demonstrations she has given over the past 40 years. Shroff has also staged exhibitions in India and abroad, performing in the 1985 Festival of India in France and appearing on prime time Chicago television.
She has however had her share of bad hair days. One evening as rain lashed the streets of Delhi, only three people came for a demonstration held at the India Habitat Centre. But she began the show regardless. With a box of slides of sculptures from Mohenjodaro onwards and a commentator in tow, she picked up a wig and deftly started working on it.
Tie it a little high in the centre and make a large doughnut. Then take a smaller doughnut and entwine false hair around it. Arrange the small doughnut exactly over the larger doughnut. Place gajras over larger doughnut. Place silver ornament on smaller doughnut and below it...
Her vocation isnt dependent on head counts, but even so Shroff agrees that few people have the time to spare that adorning your head requires. I have no quarrel with long or short hair. Wear a wig when you want something special. The idea is not to decorate the head like a Christmas tree.
Its been a long journey for Shroff since her unusual arrival on the head and shoulders scene. A 1949 advertisement that accompanied each bottle of Californian Poppy Oil noted that hairstyles were kindly supervised by Veena Purohit (her maiden surname). The fledgling hair sculptor noted in the ad: Versatile hair styles can be worn high on the head in the morning, low in the nape of the neck in the afternoon and wear heavy necklaces for evening parties.
Her interests then brought her into the film world. Gujarati artist Kanu Bhai Desai recruited her to do the hair for Jhansi ki Rani, the first coloured Bollywood film. That led to V Shantarams Jhanak Jhanak Payal Baaje. Now 150-odd films appear on her resume.
Nobody in India has a collection like mine, says Shroff proudly. Thats one reason shes still a draw for the fashion and film world. Last November, she lent out some of her jewellery for Rohit Bals show Kamasutra. Interestingly, Meera Nair had appointed Shroff to do hair designs for her film Kamasutra but reneged when Rekha showed up with her own hairdressers. By that time, however, the films costume designer had already taken extensive notes from Shroff.
The sidelining doesnt bother her, though the lack of even a note of apology rankles. But Shroff is philosophical: At this age, after 5,000 shows to your credit, you cant really feel small about such things. If you have depth about your culture you dont need publicity really. Let bygones be bygones. But I do wish I could find a sponsor to take my collection around the country, before I decide to give it to a museum.
In her seventies, Shroffs grey-on-white hair is wound in an elegant simple ambara thats hair wound in a knot with the end sticking out to you and me. She says greying too has its prescribed role. When a cab pulls in below her fifth floor penthouse on New Delhis Parliament Street, the driver invariably opens the door with a courteous namaste. That comes only with age.