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Updated 12:41 IST, February 4th 2025

WATCH: Indian Bride Breaks Beauty Norms by Ditching Wig on Her Wedding Day

Neehar Sachdeva, a US-based social media influencer, who suffers from alopecia areata, broke the internet by ditching wigs for her wedding day.

Reported by: Digital Desk
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This Indian Bride Has Won the Internet for Breaking Boundaries by Ditching a Wig
This Indian Bride Has Won the Internet for Breaking Boundaries by Ditching a Wig | Image: Instagram

While hair is often considered a symbol of beauty by society, one woman has captured hearts by defying all odds and embracing her baldness on her wedding day.

Neehar Sachdeva, a US-based social media influencer who has alopecia areata, broke the internet by choosing to forgo wigs on her wedding day.

Neehar was diagnosed with the condition when she was just six months old.

Alopecia is an autoimmune disorder that causes hair loss, as the immune system mistakenly attacks hair follicles. After her mundan ceremony, her hair grew back, but the condition resurfaced when she was in elementary school, leading to patchy hair loss.

In school, Neehar was encouraged by her family to wear wigs and keep her condition a secret.

However, her bold and fearless decision to ditch the wig on her wedding day has captured hearts across the internet.

In her wedding photographs and videos, she dons a stunning red lehenga with a maang teeka.

In the video, which has now gone viral, Neehar is seen confidently walking down the aisle with her head covered by a red veil. She gracefully removes the veil, proudly  embracing her baldness.
 

What Causes Alopecia?

Alopecia areata is an autoimmune disorder that causes hair to fall out in patches, primarily on the scalp but sometimes on other parts of the body, such as the eyebrows and nasal hair.

Alopecia can develop suddenly, is unpredictable, and can be mentally challenging to cope with, said Brett King, a hair loss expert at Yale Medicine.

“Imagine if you woke up today missing half of an eyebrow,” he said. “That unpredictability is one of the things that’s so mentally treacherous and awful because you have no control over it… it’s a disease that strips people of their identity.”

Though seldom discussed, alopecia is actually fairly common—it is the second biggest cause of hair loss after male or female pattern baldness. About 2% of people have it. While it is not physically painful, it can sometimes resolve on its own, and treatment options are available.

(Inputs from AP)

Published 11:10 IST, February 4th 2025