Love is in the hair

Along with baking and journaling, hair wash has emerged as the pandemic’s preferred self-preservation indulgence. And experts say the benefits go beyond a clean scalp

Prior to the pandemic, Riddhi Walia, publicist and founder of Mumbai-based public relations firm Mirabilis Inc, would go for a salon hair wash at least three times a week. It was a date with herself that she’d rarely miss. “I would do it on my way to work, at about 8.45 am. What I enjoyed was the hospitality of the staff at Patsy Leong in Tardeo. They had been handling my hair for years. The familiarity, the massage, the fresh scrub and the perfect blast dry... all of it was meditative.” Although the ritual has moved indoors with the lockdown and Walia has only herself to rely on, she continues to feel a sense of comfort in the scrub. The time she spends caring for her hair is the moment she says she connects with herself. 

Something similar is unfolding in the West, too. British newspaper The Guardian said “washing your hair is having a moment”, with demand for hair care products and rinse-at-home treatments soaring in the last year. Jamila Lee-Smikle, a 27-year-old fashion publicist from London, who runs the Instagram account, 
@girlfreethefro, posted a picture of her curls, captioning it, “As much as I can’t sit back in the salon chair, lockdown has been such a good opportunity for us to embrace our natural hair.” Jigar Patel, founder of Indian vegan beauty brand Brillare, has observed, what he calls, a dramatic shift in consumer behaviour. “Customers seem to be seeking more scientific and natural personal care products, and this stems from an increased awareness about personal hygiene, ingredients, and the inclination to switch to natural products for long-lasting results minus the side-effects.” The new consumer interest encouraged them to launch the oil shot, which he claims is a 100 per cent natural blend of potent oils designed to give salon-like nutrition to your hair and restore its health in 15 days. Sargam Dhawan Bhayana, Director, Paul Penders Botanicals & Tressmart Marketing, says consumers are spending less on styling products like mousses, voluminisers and more on natural, organic products and treatments that make their hair healthier in the long run. “Since their interaction with the outside world is mostly virtual, people are spending less time on styling their hair and focusing a lot more on keeping their hair clean and free of styling products.” 

Consumer behaviour has shifted in the lockdown in favour of rinse-at-home treatments that involve natural ingredients, says Jigar Patel of Brillare; (right) Ritu Gehani, who runs a plant-based salon from her Khar home, says almost all her clients nod off during the massage and hair wash

Patel says the word ‘shampoo’ originated from the Hindi word chāmpo, which essentially means to press or massage. He cites multiple reasons for the change: reduced frequency of salon visits, switch in consumer sentiments towards natural hair care, increased hair health concerns due to pandemic stress. “When people shampoo their hair, it breaks their earlier formed hydrogen bonds responsible for the shape of the shaft, allowing them to reshape their hair. So decongestion reforms the hydrogen bond, and blood circulation enhancement is responsible for giving that refreshed, rejuvenated feel to users,” says Patel, who holds more than 22 patents for his scientific formulations. 

Shama Dalal, head of marketing, Henkel Beauty Care – India, agrees. “The application process helps with blood circulation, since the scalp is stimulated. In most cases, the fragrance also plays an important part in sensory rejuvenation. Effective fragrances can uplift the mood.  And so does a massage, which comes with a hair wash.”

Riddhi Walia and Shama Dalal

Ritu Gehani runs The Hair Kitchen, a plant-based salon, out of her Khar home. Over the years, almost all her clients have nodded off on the chair during a hair wash. “You realise they are enjoying it when the questions stop and they begin relaxing to the calming music we play. In fact, we have had clients who don’t want to get up from the chair!” she laughs. When the lockdown was lifted last year, hair wash was one of the things she says clients wanted to come back for despite safety concerns. 

The ritual at Gehani’s salon has several elements—the massage, activating the pressure points near the neck, head, shoulder, maintaining accurate temperature of the water—all leading to rejuvenation. “We use natural ingredients like avocado and plants in our treatments. A clean scalp allows the hair to breathe better, and you naturally feel fresher.” 

Amit Sarda

According to Amit Sarda, founder of Soulflower, the trend began at the start of last year’s lockdown with most people taking up hobbies, and finding joy in the little passions that made them feel good amid the gloom. For some, it was baking. Others took to rigorous self-care routines. It eventually narrowed down to hair because “stress can impact our follicles far more than most people realise”. Hair thinning, he says, has become an overriding concern among clients. “The more 
you stress, the lower your vitamin B12, Omega 3 and biotin levels dip, all of which end up shrinking the follicles. This is a clear cut-message to the sebaceous gland, a microscopic exocrine gland in the skin that opens into a hair follicle, to stop producing thicker hair.”
 
Scientifically, too, washing hair has been shown to significantly reduce the level of the stress hormone, cortisol, in hair follicles.  It’s this hormone that is associated with increased hair thinning in women.

Walia’s hair ritual now includes applying coconut, almond or olive oil to her hair, alternating with onion juice. Sometimes, she also turns to scalp massage masks. “Not having manicured nails since 2020 means my fingertips are so much more useful during shampooing!” 

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