“When (women) meet me, they often say: Akhiran”

CANDID: Women in Doha or Dubai are open to funky fashionable looks, says Zehra Kabave.

Photo by Jayan Orma

By Anand Holla

One quick look at Zehra Kabave will tell you that the woman not only loves to look good, but is passionate about the art of looking good.

Her neatly plucked eyebrows will also tell you that she must be a beautician. And then her long mane of jet black hair tipped with colours blonde and green, narrows down the intrigue. She’s got to be a hairstylist.

“Actually, call me a hair artist,” she says, smiling, referring to how she treats it as an art form. She would know because she is also a painter.

Feisty and confident without being the least bit overbearing, Kabave speaks her mind like it’s the only way she could be. “For me, hairstyling is art. Each time I work on hair, I fly. I enjoy every bit of it. Through every new hairstyle or hair colour, I discover something new,” she says.

At the zingy hair salon CUT by BLISS in W Doha Hotel & Residences, Kabave has been at the forefront of transforming women’s hair ever since she moved to Doha two months back. She says, “Doha has been amazing.”

Kabave’s is a story of a woman who always knew what she was doing. She was 11 when she started dabbling in make-up and hair cuts back home in Syria.

 “My father was a little moody and didn’t like to go to the barber. So I started off by cutting his hair, and then moved to women, beginning with my mom, and later my neighbours,” she recalls, “That was playtime for me.”

At 17, the Syrian hairdresser had taken to it seriously. “Soon, I opened my own salon. But as the situation in Syria began to worsen, I moved to Dubai around five years ago and began hairdressing at hotels in UAE,” she says.

However, her loyal clients flying in to Dubai from Doha began persuading her to move here. “I liked the idea of working in Doha. I always wanted to discover this city, and I had also heard many good things about W Doha. So I decided to give it a shot. My Dubai clients are still on the lookout for me,” Kabave says, smiling.

Her personal justification for the move is that her loyal clientele in Dubai could avail the services of any of the many pro hairstylists there, unlike in Doha. “There aren’t many hairdressers here. I need to help the people here,” the 34-year-old says, chuckling.

 “Seriously though, women here came to me with burnt hair, damaged hair, awfully coloured hair, and they told me they were tired of switching salons without getting what they want,” she shares, “When they meet me, they often say: Akhiran (Finally)! At last, we found someone like you in Doha, they tell me.”

Not surprisingly, Kabave prefers the vibrant clientele of the GCC countries over all else. “I used to work as a hairdresser in Istanbul, Turkey. Almost all women there stick to basics and opt for a simple, natural look. Whereas, women in Doha or Dubai are open to funky fashionable looks,” she says.

“Here, in Doha or the GCC, if a woman has to go to work at 7, she will wake up early and get a full-fledged make-up and hair done. They love to accentuate their beauty,” she continues, “Just as in the UAE, locals here are whacky when it comes to experimenting with looks. I love to work with them.”

Moreover, the salon culture in the Gulf encompasses both socialising and lounging about, feels Kabave. “Most clients in the Gulf drop by at the salon to enjoy, chat, chill and have a good time. Many tell me they don’t know what they want to get done and that I can try out pretty much anything I wish,” she says.

Done up in poppy, eye-catching decor, the CUT salon, Kabave’s new workplace, offers a ton of hair pampering services: wash and blow dry, waves and curls, steam iron, haircut, styling, colouring, highlights, lowlights, gents cut, kids cut, root retouch, eyelashes, hair extension, hair treatments and so on.

While Kabave has done the hair of celebrities such as Moroccan singer Mona Amarsha, several Miss Europes and Manchester United footballers, she doesn’t like to hunt for stars.

“I don’t want to become just a shadow of stars. There are lots of those kinds of hairstylists out there already. Also, I don’t feel comfortable in the glam world because most stars are moody and I don’t get to do what I want,” she reasons, “I would rather work with regular folks, and I ask nothing of them but a smile.”

Kabave’s background in psychology studies, too, helps her assess her clients’ requirements. “When I talk to them, I try to understand their personality so as to get ideas for what look we should go for,” she explains, “Some women are very clear with what they want, some are withdrawn, some act excited and crazy, while some are nervous.”

Since she likes to chatter a lot, Kabave must amp down her rhythm when she comes across clients who prefer silence. “Some women sit like this,” she says, mimicking a pursed lip and a slight scowl, “So there’s just no green light to talk.”

With these clients, Kabave chooses not to hard-sell a look. “Even if the haircut she wants is old-fashioned, I just do it. That’s because if I try convincing her otherwise, she wouldn’t like it. She must have been having the same haircut and the same blow-dry all her life. So I respect her choice and keep to it.”

The realisation of a refreshing new look can be overwhelming to some. “Sometimes, after I am done, my clients look in the mirror, cry with joy and hug me. That’s because for too long, they have wanted to get a certain style or look but haven’t been able to communicate it or haven’t been satisfied with the execution of it. To be able to bring that satisfaction to their faces is what I love about my job,” says Kabave.

However, surprisingly, many women yield to the generalisation that male hairstylists are better than female. “Quite some women have told me that they don’t want a woman to do their hair, they want a man. So I tell them, just try me. If you don’t like it, don’t pay,” Kabave says.

Having worked with men all her life in salons in Syria and Dubai in UAE, Kabave has learnt a few things from them. “I learnt how important it is to gain the client’s trust, especially for a blow dry. Male hairdressers are good with blow drying because they are strong and for blow-drying you need strong arms. But then, I, too, have strong arms,” she says flexing her muscles, and laughing.

Apart from the obvious recommendation of eating a nutritious protein-rich diet and drinking lots of water, Kabave’s advice for hair care covers an important point for Qatar’s residents.

“When you have a bath, the chlorine in the water here hurts your hair. So you must give your hair a last rinse with drinking water and scrub it well to clean it thoroughly. I faced this problem in Dubai, too. When I go to Turkey or Syria, my hair becomes shinier and thicker,” she shares.

For optimum hair health, women must take hair treatments twice a week, feels Kabave. “Some women rush to me saying they are losing a lot of hair and I see that they are using the wrong colour or wrong oil. When I hold the hair in my hand, I know its CV. I know how she is treating her hair,” she says.

As for dos and don’ts, Kabave suggests not messing around much with hair. “Don’t change your hair colour more than twice a year. If you have dyed a rich colour, stick to it. Changing it over and over again will make the colour look weak. Staying with one colour will retain its richness. And yes, use Argan oil,” she says.

When Kabave claims that she can fix any sort of hair problem, her self-assuredness sure seems believable. After all, drawing out a woman’s inner personality through her hairstyle is what keeps Kabave going. “What I like best is to completely change a woman’s look. I mean, even the eyebrows,” she says, raising hers.

“Sometimes,” Kabave says, “there’s something locked up inside a woman that she can’t reach or show it to the world. I tell her: Be yourself. So I try to find that something and show her the mirror. Most often, they will thank me and tell me: Now I can see myself… THAT is me!”