Beauty via ayurveda
Ayurvedic salons have come of age. They compete with modern parlours in capturing the business of beauty, says Dhanvanti Keshaverao

Ayurvedic beauty treatments have to be given according to the skin type

Take Mumbai, New Delhi, Kolkata and Chennai, for example. A few years ago, you could count the number of ayurvedic beauty parlours in these metros with the fingers of one hand, and still have fingers free to manipulate an eyelash curler. But today there is a multitude of ayurvedic beauty salons, and they vie with the modern beauty parlours in capturing the beauty business.

Yes. Ayurvedic salons or beauty parlours have come of age. But if the salon does not bother to know about the nature of your body, then it is a fake. The three ayurvedic body types (referred to as Vata/Pitta/Kapha doshas in Sanskrit) determine how you appear physically. Everybody has a little of all three but normally one or two will predominate. When in balance, they make you look radiant and beautiful.

The Vata beauty type: Are you a person who can eat anything and never gain a pound? Are you prone to constipation? Do you develop anxiety when you have too much to do? Does your skin feel dry when you are under stress? Maybe you have rough patches in isolated parts of your body. Certain areas of your skin may even look grey. If that sounds like you, you are predominately of the Vata beauty type, and need to overcome this hurdle to experience effortless beauty.

The Pitta beauty type: Do you need a lighter jacket than everyone else? Do you overheat easily? Does your face always look a little red? Are you plagued by red dry patches on your skin? Do you experience hot flushes like small infernos? How about a strong fiery hunger? Heat and dryness are the Pitta imbalances that block you from your effortless beauty.

The Kapha beauty type: You have natural lush and radiant skin, but are prone to blemishes and oil deposits when you put on excess weight. This happens easily. Even looking at cake puts on the pounds because your metabolism is slow. If this sounds like you, than a Kapha imbalance is the stumbling block.

Ayurvedic beauty treatments have to administered according to your skin type. Excess of Pitta dosha in your body is characterised by yellow skin. Such people would also suffer from acne and rashes.

A darker skin is the characteristic of Vata dosha. Dryness of skin is often associated with this type.

People with excess of Kapha are supposed to be fairer. They suffer from problems like obesity.

But the doshas are not the only thing that need to be balanced. Dhatus consisting of water, blood, flesh, fat, bone, marrow and sperm are also as important for health and beauty as are the malas — urine, stool and sweat.

Many ayurvedic salons specialise in ayurveda herbal acne treatment.

The following herbs and commonly available ingredients are recommended to keep your skin and hair healthy:

For hair: Shikakai, reetha, amla, mehndi and neem are some of the products used for enhancing the beauty of hair. Amla acts as a base and is foamy. It removes excess oil and also prevents hair fall since it is rich in calcium, and shikakai is a softener. Neem is an anti-fungal dandruff remover, and mehndi acts as a coolant.

For skin: There are numerous products used in skin care. Amla, daruharidra, chandan khus, Multani mitti, neem, yellow mustard. Chironji and masur dal are all useful in battling problems of the skin, including acne and rash. All these can be used individually or in various combinations for face packs. The coarser ingredients act as facial scrubs. Daruharidra and neem are antiseptics and can be used for acne. Amla is effective on oily skin. Khus and chandan are coolants, and give relief to inflamed skin. Mustard produces heat and brings out pimples. Multani mitti has a drying effect on oily skin and is also a good bleaching product. Haldi (turmeric) has fairness enhancing qualities, and is a wrinkle remover, apart from being antiseptic.

The important thing in yurvedic cosmetics is the type of base used. In fact when buying over-the-counter products, you need to be careful of the base used. Ayurvedic salons insist on mixing pure products at home since the active ingredients are more effective. Rose water milk, dahi, malai, honey and coconut oil are the traditional bases for ayurveda. These do not hinder the qualities of the main ingredients, and also have healing properties. Honey, milk and rose water are recommended for oily and normal skins, whereas dahi, malai and coconut oil are best if you have a dry skin. — MF