Pallavi Juneja (@thecuriousjalebi): After a rebonding treatment damaged her thick curls eight years ago, Juneja started looking up ways to work with her natural texture. Now, you can count on the marketing professional’s encyclopaedic knowledge and detailed reviews to guide you through your hair woes. Her Facebook group, Ask Jalebi is an active community of supportive women who share their achievements and also their missteps. “When women discuss their results on the group, it encourages another who was on the fence about starting their natural hair journey,” she says.
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Pro tip: “My turning point came when I chanced upon an American blogger who said she doesn’t comb her curls dry, instead she only does that in the shower after applying conditioner—I was astounded by how well it worked for me.”
Saumya Alagh (@naturallyyounme): The former analyst knows her way around hair product aisles. After multiple sessions of rebonding resulted in weak, brittle hair, she turned to CG-friendly products to save her mane. When she failed to find enough options in the Indian market, she saw it as the perfect business opportunity to start her e-store, Naturallyyounme.com in 2018. The website lists almost 30 international and local brands to tackle every curly and wavy hair issue. “I know it’s just hair, but the struggle was real. I co-founded the company with the idea to help all those who, like me, deal with self-image issues due to their hair,” she says.
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Pro tip: “Sleeping on a cotton pillowcase soaks up moisture from your hair making it frizzy and undefined in the morning. Try a satin or silk pillowcase, or use a bonnet instead.”
Asha Barrak (@ashbabotanics): Barrak has been credited for many firsts in the Indian curly hair community. The former IT professional started the country’s first blog (Right Ringlets) dedicated to curly haircare and styling in 2014. This led to Indian Curl Pride, her Facebook community (48k followers), where women share their hair experiences and swap tips. She’s also responsible for creating the first Indian brand, Ash:ba Botanics that specifically caters to textured hair. “Until a few years ago, no one knew how to wear curly hair—salons weren’t of much help either,” she says. “Once I knew how to maintain it, I was a changed person, and I was driven to bring out that confidence in other curly girls as well.”
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Pro tip: “Style your hair when it is soaking wet to minimize frizz and enhance curl pattern.”
Elizabeth Alex (@honestlizhere): Alex is all about mega volume, and she’ll coach anyone who wants to achieve similar aspirational heights. Growing up with a short crop, she discovered her real hair potential when she started experimenting with curly girl methods in 2017. Now, her feed is a mix of techniques and reviews of natural products from women-run businesses. She also organises ‘curl meet-ups’ in different cities around the country to engage with her 100k followers offline. “When I started researching I didn’t want stuff sold to me. I wanted to know if someone had genuinely tried a routine or product, and their honest opinion of it. So when I started talking I decided to pay it forward by being objective,” she says.
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Pro tip: “It’s common to start your CG journey with a gel so you can get your curls popping. But it won’t work unless you have a healthy scalp and build-up free hair. So look for oils, shampoos, and conditioners first.”
