Asja
Pearl of Islaam
The First Egyptian Hijab Contest
By Amr Emam
IOL Correspondent, Cairo- Egypt
Signaling its keenness to keep up with the needs of a growing number of veiled women, Egypt will organize its first hijab (headscarf) contest soon.
The contest, which will usher in a heated competition among headscarf designers in Egypt, is expected to open up a new world of headscarf styles for Egypt‘s veiled women who have been on the increase over the last few years.
"This is an important contest as it will bring together headscarf designers who will contribute innovative ideas that might revolutionize the shape of the headscarf altogether," said Yasmin Mohsen, one of the panelists in the competition.
"New headscarf models can even induce more women to put on a veil, which is very useful," she added in an interview with IslamOnline.net.
The organizers of the competition say they want to give the chance to style conscious Egyptians to show how they fuse the wearing of headscarves with their vibrant colors, designs, and combinations into their experiences of the urban Egyptian city life.
They also want to encourage more women to wear the headscarf by presenting them with good-looking models that make them even more presentable.
Here, where more than 90 percent of the 80-million population are Muslims, the number of veiled women is on a high increase.
Some people attribute the rise in the number of headscarf-wearing women to the beautiful styles presented by hijab designers here, while others attribute it to increasing piety.
Wegdan Hamza, a leading Egyptian headscarf designer, has been designing headscarves for 30 years now. She pins huge hopes on the competition to improve the image of Islam by improving the way Muslim women appear.
She says when a Muslim woman is dressed beautifully she can belie rumors that Islam is against beauty and fashion.
"People in non-Muslim countries tend to have wrong perceptions about Muslims," she said.
"These perceptions can be altered if Muslims are beautifully dressed. At the same time, a Muslim woman can be induced into wearing the headscarf if fashionable models are available,"
Power of Beauty
This has been particularly true to a work mate of Sharehanda Sayed who has always resisted calls to her friends to cover her hair.
Sharehanda, a 22-year-old nurse, had talked to her mate more than once about the importance of the headscarf for a Muslim woman’s piety and appearance at the same time.
"She has never listened to my talk about the hijab" Sharehanda said about her colleague who was almost her age. "She always used to say that the headscarf would spoil her appearance," she added.
Months later, however, Sharehanda's colleague came to work, while her hair was totally covered.
It was a third friend who convinced to wear the hijab. This third friend did nothing more than donning a beautiful hijab herself.
"My friend has never stopped wearing the headscarf since then," Sharehanda said. "But she is very keen to make a balance between her need to wear it and look beautiful," she added.
This is what Yasmin Mohsen and the other panelists in the contest will be looking for. They say they will look for headscarf designs that make Muslim women beautiful, while at the same time giving them the due Islamic appearance.
"There’s no contradiction whatsoever between looking beautiful and wearing the hijab," Yasmin said.
"A woman can wear the hijab and still look beautiful," she added.
Online Voting
This will not be a contest where female beauty is presented, according to contest organizers. On the contrary, it would be an occasion for designers to show their talent, they say.
As designers start to submit photos of their innovative ideas, Egyptians will start to cast their votes online to choose the best headscarves.
The online voting is due to begin after the fasting month of Ramadan. Voters will be given a period of four months to pick the best headscarf designs.
Contest organizers have established a special website (www.hijabsstylein.com) so that headscarf fans can take part in the voting process.
"After this initial process of voting is completed, the panelist will decide on the winning design," Yasmin Mohsen said. "This will be the design that meets the standards of the competition the most," she added.
Headscarf designs that will be admitted into the competition must reflect some association with urban city life in Egypt, contest organizers say.
The best design is due to be granted a prize of LE10,000 ($1818).
Source:IslamOnline.net.
