I have always steered clear of spa treatments. To me, a spa is an intimidating place filled with therapists who love to indulge in torturous small talk about how I should have started using a night cream years ago. Or that my hair could have been shinier, if only I had paid more attention to it. Add to this the fact that past therapists have always kneaded my flesh with a kind of love and strength that you usually reserve for your chappati dough, and no one can really blame me for resolutely sticking to my decision.


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So it was with a strong sense of trepidation that I head to Jharna Shah's Makeup & Hair Academy Boutique Salon Spa in Juhu. Once there, I am led into the dimly-lit treatment room, whose interiors are decidedly Turkish. Shah tells me that the spa attracts brides in droves, whose skin and hair are analysed before charting out a beauty regime, complete with a diet plan. I choose Shah's special facial and face spa treatment and she proceeds to introduce me to my therapist, the no-nonsense Aruna.