If you’re in the UAE for a holiday, your trip isn’t complete without a desert safari. The bumpy ride over the dunes, the desert camp and the belly dancer are all good fun, but days after you’ve cleaned out the sand from your shoes and the questionable camp food from your digestive system, the one thing that remains with you is that henna tattoo.
One of the most underrated aspects of the ubiquitous desert safari, yet one of the most sought after, is the henna tent. All it takes is one person to emerge from its shady confines with a delicate filigree pattern on a hand or around an ankle and the madness begins. That henna is culturally the domain of women doesn’t stop the men, who end up with “macho” tattoos on their biceps. Pictures are taken and shared, and henna is right up there with abra rides on the UAE visitor’s to-do list.
Beyond its touristy connotations these days, the use of henna has its roots embedded in local culture. The sweet-smelling paste, primarily made of ground leaves, is applied in delicate patterns on the hands and feet of women on special occasions such as weddings and the two Eids. When dry, the paste flakes off to reveal a stain ranging in hue from light yellow to bright red.
While it was originally used to ward off evil spirits and foster fertility, henna now serves a decorative purpose and is as big a part of desi culture as it is of the Arab. Pakistani and Indian women are as fond of painting their hands and feet on special occasions as are their Arab counterparts. In fact, after weddings, Eid is the most popular occasion for henna, or “mehndi”.
Mehndi cones become available in the last week of Ramadan, and that one friend, cousin or neighbour who is known to be a mehndi application expert, is in high demand. As one such expert myself I’ve spent many an Eid suffering from finger cramps after having spent the night before applying mehndi on dozens of palms.
No expert at hand? Just walk into any salon and you’ll find an artist or 10. If you have left it until the night before Eid, be prepared for a long wait. Everyone wants their mehndi on for Eid and it’s not uncommon to see women leaving the salon at four or five in the morning. The smart thing to do is to get your mehndi done a few days before Eid, but that takes the fun out of spending all night with your friends under the pretext of mehndi.
Taking care of the pattern on your hands after it’s been applied is another art altogether. It’s recommended to leave the drying paste on your skin as long as possible, in order to get the darkest and most long-lasting stain. This involves applying layers of sugar syrup at frequent intervals after the paste has dried, to make sure it doesn’t flake off. The fiercely dedicated sleep with the paste on, wrapping their hands in plastic bags.
According to popular lore, the darker the mehndi stain on your palm, the more your future mother-in-law will love you. These days, thanks to chemical dyes added to most commercially produced mehndi mixtures, a loving mother-in-law can be had by all. So, ensure familial bliss and head to your nearest salon, or, if you are feeling particularly artistic, to your nearest grocery store. It’s mehndi season, after all.
The writer is an honest-to-goodness desi living in Dubai
