Hair-raising affairs

The Australian, based in China, has a passion for hair styling. Ankit Ajmera introduces you to Kenneth Frost

Launching his career in the fashion designing industry Frost eventually made a pair of scissors his best friend. Oprah Winfrey, Tyra Banks, sisters Kylie and Dannii Minogue and Alias starrer Melissa George are amongst the few international celebrities Kenneth has styled.

On styling Kylie and Oprah, he remarks, “Kylie has a very feminine look. She prefers not to experiment with her hair too much. She likes to keep her hair straight and long. Whereas, Oprah has thick black curly hair, which has a texture very much like the Indians. Such hair looks good short as well as long.”

Kenneth however is very fascinated with diva Madonna’s hair style. He has been around her during a few styling sessions but hasn’t yet got an opportunity to style her himself. “Madonna is very experimental by nature and her hair styles reflect her many moods. She’ll have a certain look one day and the next day it’ll change to something else,” he says.

Talking about the latest trends in hair styling, he says, “Shoulder length, wavy hair is very ‘in’ these days. Hair should have lots of bounce to add charisma to a woman’s personality. Then there is the straight and shiny do which is always a classic look.” He personally prefers short, sleek and shiny hair. “To carry short hair, one has to be very confident. I feel short hair conveys pure attitude and it looks even edgier if it’s a bit asymmetrical.

When asked if he wants to style any Hindi film actor, he instantly says, “Indian movies have lots of songs. So I believe all male actors like to keep their hair long so that they can get a good bounce while dancing. I would like to style Shah Rukh Khan in a short crop.”

Running his own salon in China by the name of ‘Arke Hairdressing Shanghai,’ Frost is also working with the education team of European cosmetics company -  Alfaparf Milano - his job is to teach and educate stylists about hair styling and trends and conduct seminars around Asia.

On his recent trip to India, he was asked to conduct a work shop for Indian hair professionals such as Javed Habib, Adhuna Akhtar, Hakim Alim, Savio, and VLCC.
According to him a stylist should to be very careful to observe the face structure of person he is styling. “I visualise what will suit the person, and then, suggest an appropriate haircut,” he says.

In the future, he hopes to impart his knowledge on hair styling on more people. When pointed out that India has very few professional hair styling institutions, he remarks, “I would love to open a school here. India, with its cosmopolitan crowd, is a great upcoming market for hair stylists. Let’s see if things work out in future.”

a_ankit@dnaindia.net