Delhi finally gets to experience the Rossano Ferretti touch after a wait of almost a decade as he launches his hair salon and spa in the heart of the capital at The Manor. Devi Singh checks out the latest outpost while speaking to the groundbreaker hairdresser on his radical craft, high-priced haircut and how he likes to remain impervious to the fads and trends
He's engaged in a dialogue with someone, probably giving out a consultation to a prospective client or so it seems. He's busy, very busy directing his staff, keeping an eye on the minutest of details as the hairdryers buzz in the background. Even in this commotion he continues with a zen like calm and there's no sign of fatigue on his monastic face. He looks like an everyday guy to me with no fallacies or pretence. It's hard to imagine that the same person charges preposterously exorbitant amount of money for a haircut. A whooping $1,000 is what I last heard. The price tag does come with a reason of its own. He has snipped the hair of who's who from Hollywood A-listers, supermodels, the royalty. But the world renowned celebrity hairstylist doesn't have an air one would associate with somebody who's been a notable figure and played a major role in shaping the fashion world. Rossano is quiet a man of his own, a free agent mostly someone who marches to the beat of his own drum and with a deep connect to his karmic philosophy.
He made inroads in India in 2009 by opening his first salon in Four Seasons Mumbai and since then has come a long way in the country. With a massive influence and affection for the Indian culture he says, "When I came to India for the first time I had a few clients but it was a new world for me. I came here with a very clear mission to contribute and celebrate the Indian beauty culture and upgrade the benchmark in the market. When I opened my Mumbai salon the haircut was around $8 to $12 in the Mumbai market and I changed it to $100 dollars which turned out to be a game changer. That was the time when the boutique salon, bespoke natural cuts and organic hair colour was surfacing up. And I just seemed to fit in."
He goes on saying there's not much difference between India and Italy. "We have the same family and food values. Even the same hair if you go down to south of Italy..the world is not so different as people want to make it look like."
Known for his avant-garde signature cut, 'the method' which involves a free flowing body movement following the natural flow of hair, he says, "It happened back in the 90s when fashion was 'the big thing' with the super model and the real celebrity culture around. I was cutting the hair of most popular girls and everybody seemed to be happy but I wanted something else. I didn't want to see the shape, I didn't want to see the layers, I just wanted to see the real hair movement in a very organic way. It was all based on geometry, like chopping triangle. You have to follow the hair not the cut….the hair tells you where to cut."
So where does this visionary seek his inspiration from is what one would wonder. As a child it was design and fashion, as a young adult it was food, street and culture. And today it's his sister, himself and people around him. He's a big world watcher but very evasive and guarded about his personal life. He doesn't even reveal much about his celebrity clients, dodging questions diligently. Nudges or pushes won't work on him. But ask him about one celebrity he would like to work with, "Audrey Hepburn because rest I have worked with," he says with a cheekish grin.
Hailing from a small town in Italy the creative bug hit him pretty young at the age of 16. He went to london and learnt a very difficult haircut in flat three days that people took couple of years to learn. Maybe the credit goes to his genes, his grandfather being a barber and mother a hairdresser with a two-chair salon in their small town, maybe it runs in the blood. "I have learnt respect for people from them, they have taught me to be harmonious with myself and my life because beauty is all about harmony," he notes.
Speaking about beauty and how the perception of it has changed over the years, he's of the opinion that whatever you do or use has to be the best natural ingredients with phenomenal bio technology. Ask him one thing he would want to change about Indian women and pat comes the reply, "I would ban the use of coconut oil. It does more harm than good. You have to wash your hair twice the more effort besides nothing can penetrate your hair fibre without a technology."
Rossano likes serene spaces with quaint little charm explaining his choice for his first Delhi outlet. "I was offered bigger names but I opted for The Manor. This place works for me as it is similar to the kind of environment and privacy I want."
Agrees Darpan Sanghvi, the man managing Rossano Ferretti in north India saying, "It is a very exclusive boutique concept for a very discerning clientele at a great location, a perfect little escape. Coming to a Rossano Ferretti salon is an event for our customers."
They say you are never really dressed without great hair. But for Rossano it's not about the glamour of it, rather the beauty and only organic beauty. A very private person indeed who would never be seen instagramming his luxe wheels or his choice of poison, he has created the Rossano Ferretti world around him which he's very proud of. A healthy, serene, and contemplative world. Rossano staying true to his life philosophy wants to give back to the society someday. "I would like to open a school and give my method. I don't want to die with my secret, I would rather share it with the world. I don't open a salon to make money and use it as a factory."
Ask him to give a hair care tip and he ponders over a little and says with a reflective tone, "Never try to change your hair." Well it's more of a philosophy than a tip, some
would feel.