Indore: After hectic preparations for Diwali, Saturday was a day of relaxation for a large number of women in Indore celebrating Roop Chaudas. Most women flocked to beauty parlour and salons not only to get ready for the grand festivity of Diwali, but also for body massages and traditional ubtan (body scrub).
Naraka Chaturdashi falling on the second day of Diwali and is celebrated to mark the victory of Lord Krishna against Narkasur. The day is also known as Chhoti Diwali, Kali Chaudas or Roop Chaudas. There is a ritual to break karit (a bitter fruit) on the day, symbolising the victory of good over the evil.
Kali Chaudas is the day when a person is expected to abolish laziness and evil residing in his own self that is turning his life towards hell. Hence, the importance of bringing out your best self is must by washing away all the negativity and evil.
Women spent good amount of time and money on body massage, spa and hair treatment in parlours. The massages with natural oils or aroma therapies were most sought-after services.
“For working women, the concept of beauty is not about doing a special thing for a particular day, but regular maintenance of the look. I decided to take a step further for Roop Choudas and upgraded my facial keeping in mind the festive spirit,” Madhuri Sharma, chief executive officer of a private firm, said.
“Besides being preparing for Diwali, I got ready for gathering at our office on Roop Chaudas. My main aim was to get relaxed through spa and massage as the preparation for Diwali was quite hectic in the past few days,” Neha Mittal, an interior designer, said.
Beauty salons were busy throughout the day offering varied services to clients pampering and beautifying them from head to toe. Special packages were designed for the day as the clients were managed in slots.
“Beauty today is not just about looking good, but also being healthy and detoxified from inside. People are thinking more in terms of herbal treatments and services, which give them healthy glow instead of makeup,” Sapna Shukla, owner of a salon, said.
While in many families beautification of women on Roop Chaudas held significance, in Marathi families men were massaged with fragrant oils even before the sunrise to celebrate ‘Narka Chaturdashi’.
Women also beautified themselves at home with home remedies and traditional beauty hacks for Roop Chaudas. The most popular traditional ubtan was prepared using gram flour and turmeric powder.
“Using homemade ubtan is definitely better for us, because no matter how well-advertised the product claiming to be organic, it has preservatives that have a negative impact on our skin,” Prakrati Verma, a homemaker, said.
