Last week I had the opportunity of interacting with former Miss Sri Lanka for Miss Universe 2005, and now leading beautician and make up professional responsible for some the most glamorous photo shoots. After enjoying the limelight for more than 20 years locally and internationally, she has taken a back seat and decided to share her expertise with the new faces of the industry. Through her salon Wow Hair and Beauty in Kollupitiya, Rozanne Diasz is grooming and is willing to help those who seek guidance related to hair and makeup.
With years of success, she believes in giving back to society, “Wow Hair and Beauty salon isn’t a high class salon, not state-of-the-art or over the top, it’s simple and has the basic but the required facilities. I want my salon to be an affordable one so that every woman can enjoy the luxury of salon treatment. All rates are affordable and at the same time I use good products as well. Most of my clients are always on the go, they want the job done quickly and properly and the staff is trained in that manner”.
Beauty and makeup is a huge part of Rozanne’s life, starting to model at a young age for many leading local and international brands and representing the country at the Miss Universe pageant. Even though still getting offers, she has taken a back seat and is promoting up and coming talent. Rozanne, recently called out the current modelling industry and how models are being objectified, “It’s no more about art, but being heavily sexualized in the name of selling a concept. Her most recent call out was when a social media page had compared her pageant body to current beauty contestant’s body and shaming the contestant’s appearance. As always she created a positive impact and highly criticized body shaming. She urged the organizations to uplift the standard of these pageants.
“Being comfortable in your own skin is important, right now I love the way I look and have no reason to get into shape, but when it comes to pageants there are certain standards and organizers should understand we are representing a country and a proper image should be projected. Using a pageant to gain other opportunities should be stopped, the value is being lost”.
Wow Hair and Beauty is a small property, but the staff is efficient and friendly; bridal dressing and hair and makeup being the main forte of her salon. She and her team are constantly travelling around the country dressing up brides, “We aren’t very prominent in Colombo related to bridal as we started very recently, but out of Colombo we are always busy. It’s affordable and I like that I am able to cater to different clients, without having that niche market yet.”
This is Rozanne’s way of giving back, still calling herself an amateur in the trade and learning every day. She draws inspiration from many Indian makeup artists, “I love the way they do make up in India and how creative makeup artists get with each personality. I get inspired by most of the Bollywood artists and their makeup and hair trends. I follow them on Instagram and get myself updated constantly. Beauty and makeup in form experimenting and experiencing, once you know what’s right for you then it’s about alternating the trend which suits you best.”
Wow Hair and Beauty is a budget salon, located at a very convenient location. The services include manicure, pedicure, nail art, more than 10 different facials, head and shoulder massages, hair growth massages, hair treatments, fashion colors, hair extensions, eyelash extensions, waxing, saree draping, acrylic and gel nails, haircuts and bridal dressing.
Written by Menaka Indrakumar