Beauty for a cause

Tue, May 13 12:10 AM

The room was crowded with women and mannequins. Some women were applying creams on the mannequins while others were twisting and twirling their hair.

They were chattering with each other with gleeful expressions and yet, there was pin drop silence in the entire room. Welcome to Shamute, a beauty training institute that provides vocational training courses to the speech and hearing impaired.

The institute was set up in 1984 by renowned beautician Shenaz Husain as a way to facilitate career opportunities for these women. Today there are four month courses round the year with fifteen students per batch.

Free of cost, the courses are open to everyone, subject to availability. At the session we attended the teacher, Bindeshwari, was impaired and an alumni of the same school.

The girls watched enthralled as she taught them the nuances of how to give a good facial. Unlike unruly classrooms where objections are raised in loud volumes, the students here intervened with gestures and expressions.

These are practical classes, they are have theory lessons with written material. The world is their oyster, says Shahnaz Husain.

"They face no distraction of sound or the necessity to speak. Instead they are totally focused on the work at hand, giving full attention and always a 100 per cent.

In fact, their salon bookings have sometimes surpassed the bookings of many of the normal therapists." Interestingly these girls are especially in demand in European countries, as their skills are invaluable.

Also, the fact that they are skilled and independent contributes greatly to their odds of finding life partners. What's more, these women are also likely to get more clients as people respond more positively to them.

The training is conducted free and at the end of the course the girls are given a diploma. This gives them an opportunity to find jobs in other beauty salons or work for any Shahnaz Husain salon.

Any enquiry about the course to the students themselves is met with a polite smile. Communicating with clients in parlours is a skill they are still working on.

It's not easy for them to understand the clients and they have to be dependent on others to explain the special requests. They are hard working and eager to learn, so you can rest assured that when you meet one of them the next time you are in a parlour, they will ensure that you get what you want.

But remember, communication works both ways, so make sure you try and understand them. Shamute is in GK1.

Contact: 41634487.

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