We met Arthi and Janu back in December 2013. They called into the salon, booked appointments for cuts, and asked if they would be able to film the process. We happily said yes, and from then on Janu and Arthi have been loyal clients to the salon.

During their first visit, Arthi chose to take her waist long hair and cut it into a pixie cut. She blogged about her process and feelings on their website Aathma. Janu is 24, she is the creator of aathma.ca and is currently in school for Communications and HR Management. Her sister Arthi, 21, is in school for Biology and was recently accepted into Osgoode Law School.

We sat down with Janu to get her opinion on having short hair and her experiences:

What is the basis of your blog?

Lifestyle, I wanted to create a platform for myself. I found it hard to find a place to share my opinions and thoughts, so we created one for ourselves. The focus of the blog has changed from just fashion to culture and people and life, and just getting by as people that are evolving.

“Someone that requires no validation from anyone else is the strongest being in the world.”

What has been the biggest benefit of the blog?

After I started writing, and after my sister started writing, it pushed us both to be more outspoken. It made me feel more sure of myself. I feel like when you start getting your thoughts onto paper and seeing the words you are trying to say, you become more sure of yourself. That is where the name of the blog, Aathma comes from, it means the essence of being. It’s the part of you that is immortal.

What projects do you have coming up in the future?

Initially when we came into The Loft Toronto to get our hair cut, we wanted to put together a short little video about beauty ideals of society. After reaching out to a couple of girls and asked what beauty means to them, and what it means to be a woman, we realized that the response was overwhelming. We are putting together a short documentary on the topic. By the end of this year we want to have it up and out. We want to have a screening party. We want something for women by women about beauty. A lot of it touches on; the type of your hair, the length of your hair and how it doesn’t determine how beautiful you are. I am also working on a book of poetry. Hopefully the book and the short doc come out at similar times. But, my focus at the moment is on the documentary.

“I was going into radiation. So, with the prospect of potentially losing my hair … I thought, it’s now or never.”

Did you have the documentary in mind when you first cut your hair?

No, not at all. When my youngest sister, Abby, came in to have her hair cut shorter it was just us urging her to cut her hair and take a risk. She was a lot quieter and now she is very outspoken. It was a push for her to just go out there and be herself. And, for Arthi, I had been talking to her about how good she would look with short hair and we talked about change and stepping out of her comfort zone. One day when I told her, “you should cut your hair” her response was, “ya, I am going to do it!” I was surprised.

Her hair was long, she donated over 20 inches, and I thought it was just incredible.

For myself, I’ve been wanting to shave my whole head for a while. I knew I wasn’t feeling well at that time, and that I was going in and getting radiation. So, with the prospect of potentially losing my hair and  also wanting to cut my hair for so long I thought, it’s now or never. I told myself, “If I don’t cut my hair now I know I’m not going to cut my hair after, so I just got rid of it all.” Good news is I’m not undergoing radiation anymore and even more good news is I have short hair and I love it.

When you have your hair long , for so long, it’s hard to change.  You cut away everything that you hide behind and everything you know to be beautiful and you are forced to rely on who are as a person and not just the length of your hair and how nicely you can twirl it or flip it.

I am definitely grateful that I cut my hair. Coming from a South Asian upbringing where the length of your hair and how dark your hair is determines how much you are wanted as a women. So, it was kind of a big FU too.

Please elaborate on how it changed your confidence.

For my sisters, I think they had their own options, cutting their hair took away their chance to hide, so now they are more expressive. It is amazing to see them blossom.

I always found myself to be a bit of a loud mouth. For me, as opposed to making me louder, I feel it actually grounded me more. I was forced to look at myself, past my appearance, and internally and start to heal. It really started that journey of self healing for me.

How do you feel about other people’s reactions to you now that your hair is shorter?

For one, men don’t approach us the same way they use to.. Not that I want them to approach us, but it’s just interesting. Women are more inclined to tell us that they love our hair, they are more uplifting. It’s kind of beautiful, it unifies us as women. But, I definitely think that men don’t approach me as much and women approach me more to tell me they like my hair and that I am rocking it short. And, it’s the same thing for Arthi.

“The most interesting people are the ones that don’t fit into any boxes.”

How did your family react to each of you cutting your hair?

Any South Asian mom would be like “woah, you just cut your hair, it’s so short,” but our direct family has been really amazing. They were like “ok, cool you wanted to cut your hair, then cut it. Lose all the hair you want, but don’t lose the level of self respect you hold as a women.” Our family has always been very supportive. Extended family and people in our culture is where the negativity really kicked in “you have short hair now, you look like a boy.” And, for men they tend to react with, “why would you do that?” I find it to be really up and down. We get a lot of positive and we get a lot of negative but, for me, having short hair, I really don’t care what they want from me.

Do you feel there’s a stigma towards women with short or creative hair?

Absolutely. It’s true that when you meet someone for the first time, there appearance is the first impression. I think that we live in a world that everything needs to be put into categories, people just do that. They are comfortable with that, and if someone is not fitting into a category, then it’s awkward. Women are supposed to look a certain way and act a certain way and exude a certain energy, but I don’t think that is necessarily true. The most interesting people are the ones that don’t fit into any boxes.

What would you like to say to any women who are thinking about cutting their hair?

Why not, it’s just hair. Someone that requires no validation from anyone else is the strongest being in the world, so cut it.