In Pakistan’s rural Sindh province, Hindu women have passed down the tradition of facial and body tattoos for generations — marks that symbolized beauty, identity, and protection from evil. But as younger generations grow more connected to urban life and global beauty norms, many are choosing to leave these ancestral inkings behind, sparking concern that the centuries-old practice may vanish altogether.
Grinding charcoal with a few drops of goat’s milk, 60-year-old Basran Jogi peers at the faces of two young Pakistani sisters preparing for their first tattoos.
The practice of elder women needling delicate shapes onto the faces, hands, and arms of younger generations stretches back centuries in the Hindu villages that dot the southern border with India.
“First draw two straight lines between the eyebrows,” Jogi instructs her friend, who is poised with a sewing needle.
“Now insert the needle along the lines — but slowly, until it bleeds.”
Six-year-old Pooja barely winces as dotted circles and triangles are tattooed onto her chin and forehead.
On the outskirts of the rural town of Umerkot in Sindh province, her seven-year-old sister Champa eagerly declares, “I am ready too.”
In recent years, however, as rural Hindu communities in Muslim-majority Pakistan become more connected to nearby cities, many young women have opted out of the “old ways.”
“These signs set us apart from others,” says 20-year-old Durga Prem, a computer science student who grew up in the nearby city of Badin.
“Our generation doesn’t like them anymore. In the age of social media, young girls avoid facial tattoos because they think these marks will make them look different or unattractive.”
Her sister Mumta has also chosen not to receive the tattoos that mark their mother and grandmothers.
“But if we were still in the village, we might have had these marks on our faces or arms,” she reflects.
Ward Off Evil Spirits
Just two percent of Pakistan’s 240 million people are Hindu, with the majority living in rural areas of southern Sindh province.
Discrimination against minorities runs deep, and Hindu activist Mukesh Meghwar — a prominent voice for religious harmony — believes younger generations avoid tattoos because they fear being immediately identified as Hindu in public.
Many Muslims believe tattoos are impermissible in Islam, and even those who have them rarely display them in public.
“We can’t force our girls to continue this practice,” Meghwar told AFP. “It’s their choice. But unfortunately, we may be the last generation to see tattoos on our women’s faces, necks, hands, and arms.”
Few Hindus interviewed by AFP remembered the original meaning behind the tattoos or when the practice began.
Anthropologists, however, believe the tradition is hundreds of years old.
“These symbols are part of the culture of people who trace their roots to the Indus civilisation,” says anthropologist Zulfiqar Ali Kalhoro, referring to a Bronze Age era that predates modern religions.
“These ‘marks’ were traditionally used to identify members of a community and to ward off evil spirits,” he adds.
Admiring the work on the grinning faces of the two little sisters, elder Jogi agrees it’s an ancestral tradition that enhances the beauty of women.
“We don’t make them for any specific reason — it’s a practice that has continued for years. This is our passion,” she says.
The tattoos begin as dark black but fade to a deep green over time, lasting a lifetime.
“They belong to us,” says Jamna Kolhi, who received her first tattoos as a child alongside Jogi.
“These were drawn by my childhood friend — she passed away a few years ago,” says the 40-year-old.
“Whenever I see these tattoos, I remember her and those old days. It’s a lifelong remembrance.”
By Sameer MANDHRO / AFP
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