QL features: Sha's Mehndi - discovering henna art in Qatar

Reflecting almost every girl’s love for henna, Shahana, more popularly known as Sha of Sha’s Mehndi on Instagram, discovered her talent around 10 years ago, when she was settled in Bahrain with her family. With Eid around the corner and no one to keep up with the usual traditions of applying henna like it used to happen back home in India for her, Shahana made it a point to use the internet and her love for henna and started creating magic!

How It Started
With no access to social media, Shahana took it on herself and kept finding designs and patterns she could include in her next mehndi application. Whenever there would be weddings or festivals like Eid, she’d take the responsibility and apply henna on her mother and sister's hands. It wasn’t until a few years later than she was at a cousin's wedding back in India and volunteered to apply henna on the bride that she was discovered by her family. What started as a passion for celebrating Eid then became a business opportunity for Shahana. From friends and family to acquaintances, Shahana was being asked to apply bridal mehndi on all and finally, when she started her university, she made this a side business. This was the point where she felt like she had practiced enough and had gained the confidence to put herself out there – Sha’s Mehndi came into being.

Introducing Sha Mehndi Cones:
When passion meets a profession, one is bound to grow. Similarly, Shahana found herself running into trouble with mehndi cones. As she felt like she had to deliver the absolute best, she started making her own organic mehndi cones from the scratch. She’d buy the powder and essential oils from Rajasthan and make her own cone – fully capable of vouching for her product! News spread around fast and Sha found herself getting orders from the USA, Australia, India, and Qatar.

Sha Mehndi in Qatar:
In 2021 March, Shahana took her next step in the business – online henna classes. With the world at the internet’s disposal, her class filled up within hours of opening and she started her first session with 10 students per class where she taught basic and advanced levels of henna application. The classes are in Malayalam and English both, to cater to her audience locally and on an international level as well.

Shahana is currently back in Qatar and taking limited appointments for henna application in person. With her vast experience, her online masterclasses are also open, the most recent one having wrapped up in January.
A concept that has existed for over 5, 000 years, the origins of henna application actually go back to the ancient Middle East. To keep it simple, mehndi or henna, is temporary body art, that made its mark in the world way before tattoos and hair dyes existed and it seems like artists like Shahana are celebrating this art and making designs on the go for all!

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