A braided gesture of Love.

This post won the runner-up prize in the said contest.

Some days I am a curl,

while others, I merely swirl,

They say, I am a sweet lullaby,

or that, I am a braided gesture of love,

perhaps, it is just Dove.

Sometimes strictly parted on the side, sometimes seductively falling over one eye, sometimes wet, sometimes rigid, sometimes tied up in a high ponytail, sometimes braided together into a french bun, sometimes tousled in the front with a fishtail braid over the left shoulder, sometimes the usual bombshell waves, sometimes polished, yet sometimes casual. Your hair define your personality, more so, they define you. A messy braid resting on the nape of your neck will make you your man's guilty pleasure even on the most unlucky day of your life.

I have been raised by a loving punjabi family and a strict Convent school. And by a convent, I'm not intending to imply towards nuns and discipline, I mean a compulsory pair of braids with a precise middle parting. I've lived, loved, grown, and also matured in braids. The way they frivolously hung over my neck gave me a beautiful carefree feeling. There are certain things in life that look better when put in perspective, one of them is my hair. Its like they have a mind of their own, they know when to be mean and when to be subtle, when to be nervous and when to be at their cautious best. Nonetheless, over the years, I've fallen in love with them.

Hair, I believe, have a mind of their own,

They twirl, they dance;

Not always prim, not always proper,

It can make you drown, into its serene expanse.

To be honest, I've never had long hair, even though I'm proud of my Indian woman mindset, that loves her silky smooth hair flowing carelessly in the summer breeze. And when they do oblige me by growing beyond a certain length, I have to chop them off because, Hair, is a funny thing, they curl, swirl, twirl, dance, straighten, perm and among other things that you and I thought they could never do, they now split too.

The first time when I heard of split ends, I was a careless teenage girl, and was shocked to know that a thin healthy strand of hair could betray and split into two if deprived of proper nutrition and care. Through Indi, Dove has always encouraged me to talk more and more about my hair, and it always sends me into a cute memoir of a fuzzy-hair-girl flashback. But split ends, they're new to me. Just when you think you're doing everything right, your hair smite you in the face with a wake-up call.

I started working as a teacher last year. Stress levels rose, sleep hours got cut, pollution poured in, causing my healthy hair to revolt back in unsympathetic split ends. Chop chop, snip snip. My beautiful braid from 2012 had to be disguised into regular shoulder length waves that I now have. I wish Dove had launched its Split end Rescue System back then, before I got my cut, but better late than never, and I couldn't be more thankful. Braids are supposed to have a beautiful beginning and beautiful ends. And it's possible now, 4x times less split ends with the new Dove range. 

 I, mostly, do not have a clue as to what is the criteria for calling one's hair happy, but what I do know with certainty is that when you are happy, your hair bask in your glory.

Friends shot envious stares, relatives wondered,

Only because she grew up, with tresses so long,

They did all, but could never find the answer,

To, how on earth were her hair so strong?

Hair, weren't much of an issue,

Until the day, time flew by and stress flew in,

Bringing along, dryness, damage, split ends

And hair, Oh so thin!

Reminiscing about old times,

When her hair shone with pomp and glory,

Nostalgia overcame, and she knew,

A change was needed, to rebuild her damaged hair story.

And then, came along DOVE,

With its enriched conditioners and mild fragrance,

A shampoo that coaxed the split ends,

and taught them once again, what was LOVE.

                                                             

This post is in association with IndiBlogger and its Dove Split End rescue system.

If Only Our Strands Could Talk.

Hair, as Beatles wore it,

Sparked a change with an unappaled ease;

A rendezvous with Hepburn's pixie,

Made men go weak in the knees.

From demure to daring,

Monroe's curls have seen it all;

Men drooled and men sighed,

Only if, it weren't such a beautiful sprawl.

Hair, I believe, have a mind of their own,

They twirl, they dance;

Not always prim, not always proper,

It can make you drown, into its serene expanse.

'You are the most beautiful creature on earth' -
her hair whispered in her ear, in a language only hair can speak
and Dove can comprehend.

It is foolish to tear one's hair in grief, as though the sorrow would be made less by baldness ~ Cicero.

 Even while pepping up for a party, a differently done hairstyle can always add that dash of extra drama to your outfit. They say, beware of a woman's long hair, if she wounds the magic of her long locks around her man's neck, he might fall in irrevocable, consuming love with her that might never set him free.

Apart from endless hours of amusement and happy smiles, all Disney has ever showered upon young girls, is unrealistic expectations about hair. Little angels even dreamt of those blonde flowy curls wondering about how could someone's hair always stay in place. They would spend hours at stretch infront of the mirror, combing and adoring their mane. A great deal of my childhood was also tangled in Rapunzel's hair, until one fine day when I grew up and acknowledged the fact that life's no fairy tale and if anything at all, Cinderella wore a wig at all times.

Your hair can make all the difference between being present and being noticed, between being a plane jane and a sizzling diva. It isn't anymore about how you look or how you walk, even a 30 year old woman can walk into a room and turn heads if her gorgeous hair plan on it. Have you ever wondered how easy life would be if our strands could talk and discuss their problems ? It would save them from a lot of torture and pain that we put them through. Imagine how everything would automatically fall into place just because your hair could tell you that the new dandruff shampoo that you've been using isn't working for them, or a casual request to let them stay loose this sunday. Alas! It remains a beautiful fantasy residing inside my heart. Like every other girl, I too have a beautiful hair story and it made me believe in bringing back what once was mine.

As a little girl, I believed only in play. A thick, shiny ponytail bobbing to the tunes of my jumpy feet rested at the crown of my head and it never demanded any extra attention. I almost took it for granted, when one fine day, it gave up on my carelessness. Being the clumsy teenager that I was, I have never used too many styling products or have never put my hair through too much iron, but still my hair grew rougher and thinner by the day, and the rain gods also seemed pretty upset considering all the humidity they bestowed that was robbing my hair off its moisture and smoothness. It might have been college, or stress over an incomplete assignment, or our auto rides to the movies while bunking lectures, it started falling out on me. I cribbed, worried and blamed the exam tension for it, but who knew, it had nothing to do with it.

It did take me a while to realize that my hair had gotten bored of our monotonous relationship. They revolted back in split-ends. Like every other normal couple, they needed extra time, special care and pampering from me, which they weren't getting. Expensive salons, eager spa sessions, nothing seemed to be working. It was almost like my life was over and all of my hair would just leave me.

As soon as I realized this, I took care of my locks like a baby and that was the end of my hair problems. Dove Damage Therapy Range has been a blessing in disguise for me in testing times like these. Perhaps, on second thoughts, maybe our strands do talk, but only to Dove. Proper oil massages, moisture filling with Dove Damage Therapy Conditioner after every wash, protecting my hair from getting attacked by direct sunlight, these little tid bits made my hair smile a healthy curve. Sprouts, nuts, carrots, eggs, milk and greens are a regular part of my diet since then. I know my hair better than ever now. I rained moisture upon my hair making up for all the nourishment I had stripped off it. In my experience, those four words that shower health over your hair are 'A good hair stylist'. He should understand the needs of your hair and give you sound advice whenever the situation demands. Invest in one and you'll never regret your decision. Mine is DOVE.

No matter how upset your hair are, Dove's  magic wand knows the trick.
Collage Credits -  http://littlemomentsofbliss.blogspot.in/

It is often said that good times are valued only because of the bad times that we have suffered through, but what matters the most is the simple answer to the question, are we game enough to deal with the bad times ? Every girl witnesses bad hair days in her life, but not letting them get to the mind and looking for a reason as to why they're upset would be the key to this lock.

My mom has always had curly hair, although they lost their volume over the years as a result of post-pregnancy nightmares, but the bounce never left her side. And on the contrary my dad has the darkest and the most straight hair in my entire paternal family. Earlier I used to take it as a blessing that my hair have inherited their texture and color from dad but with each passing day, there is this growing urge to have soft curls inside of me. This little wish of mine is being discussed here because I want to proudly present the fact that I've not been stubborn and I've not played against what nature has already bestowed upon me. I go in for temporary hair styles every now and then but a permanent damage is way off my radar.

Dove, helped me in recognizing the true value of my hair, and I can never thank the little birdie enough for it. I pray to God for strength to those who are battling cancer. Holding a head without hair, high over your shoulders requires great will and strength. I salute them.

Bald is the new Beautiful.
I have had this picture in my laptop since forever.
Using it today for this write-up is giving me immense happiness.
If you too are writing for this contest, I request you to add this picture and help in spreading awareness.

My best wishes to all the participants.

This is an official entry for IndiBlogger's Dove Contest. You may acknowledge it here.

Click on the logo to visit the new DoveHairCare app and know your hair in a shiny new light.

My Tangle of Mysterious Prejudice

This post has won the fourth prize in Dove's 'Damage Therapy Range' contest.

They swirl, they twirl, they dance, they entangle his desire - Your hair - don't have them, wear them.

Ask a man 'how would you want your girl to do her hair' and pat comes the reply 'She's at her sexiest when they're messily tied up. I love them like that.'

Hair represent a woman's every mood with equal elegance.

A formal event - you tie them up to compliment your attire.

Cooking - you curl up a bun so that it keeps them from falling.

Wanna cuddle ? - you mess'em up.

Stroll with friends - let them loose and breathe.
*Thinking of a story to blog about - pick up some strands, roll them on your index finger, feel good, pretend like you're in deep thought process and eventually laugh at your own stupidity :D

I never accessorize. I'm not an accessory person. I like to compensate it with my hair. I don't have them, I wear them. I don't have 'the' perfect hair every woman dreams of but they're mine, they demand care from me like its their birth right, and I love them for it.

I give them proper moisturization and believe me, even if you have oily hair, they need some moisture and conditioning.
They serve me loyally in my hour of need and that covers up for their little mischief every now and then. I desperately wish I had a poetic streak somewhere in me because a poem would express me the best right now. Its an itch I cannot scratch. *:D* I scare away couplets, they never wander anywhere near 50 miles of my presence.

When I saw Kangna's curls in Gangster, I fell for them instantly. My hair have been wavy all my life. My want for 'curls-like-the-mad-girl-in-gangster-has' grew and became a need overnight. It demanded my mom's immediate attention. Her naturally curly curls even hid her bad accent and evil acting skills in it, for me, of course :D. It was an incident my mom would never forget. She threw in all kinds of distractions and I don't quite recall which one of them walked its way to glory. Anyhow, I was a kid back then. 2 years ago, a very dear friend of mine, who had the most beautiful hair you could ever want, got her straight locks curled. Before I could aid her 'screaming-for-help' hair, the damage was done. She was born and raised with silk threads on her head and this change threw her into the oh-so-curly 'Kangna' land. A month later, she went into the same salon and got her hair re-bonded, which was double the damage. Although superficially she looked the same as she did with her natural hair, but because I knew the story, I could spot the burnt ends and the irreparable damage.

I swore that very day, never in my life would I torture my hair like that.

Take my word : Do not ever go for curls if you haven't been blessed with them naturally. You will be charged with brutal murder. Of your innocent hair.


I was in a big serious dilemma last month. I had recently joined the gym and my sweaty hair screamed for a bath almost everyday. I couldn't torture them with the regular shampoo everyday so I consulted my homeopathic physician (Yes, I do that often and she's my godmother). I'm not writing the next line because I am going to submit this post on Indiblogger, I cross my heart and swear not to lie :P. She told me to switch to Dove :) She said I could use it even on a 1 year old baby's hair, its that mild. I drove my way to happy hair back home :) I began writing this post because of this sole incident :)

My hair aren't very great, but they're happy and healthy, which is far more important :) They have their regular dose of oiling, spas, conditioning and home remedies (they work like nothing else does) :)

Tangled remains to be my favorite animated movie of all times :) Not exaggerating :D

P.S. I always correct people when they pluralize hair as 'hairs'. It grosses me out a little.

This was my hair story. What's yours ?

Read these and submit yours on Indiblogger here :)

Because life is full of challenging and frustrating moments until the day you eventually find a hair-product that is tailor-made for your hair :) Mine is Dove :)