Breaking Norms

Content creator Neehar Sachdeva's bald beauty broke the internet and rewrote bridal norms. She speaks to us on shedding expectations (and wigs) to embrace her truth.

- Malika Halder

When Ross dumped Bonnie in Friends after she shaved her head, it subtly reinforced a beauty standard that many of us grew up internalising: A woman's desirability is linked to her hair. Bonnie—confident, smart, and quirky—was reduced to a punchline the moment she no longer fit the “feminine ideal” of long, luscious locks. That scene echoed a wider cultural obsession with thick long hair, and fed into the belief that hair is social currency. But women like Neehar Sachdeva are flipping that narrative on its head. From wearing wigs at age 11 to confidently walking down the aisle bald and beaming, Neehar's journey with alopecia is both powerful and personal. Whether it was reclaiming her power by shaving her head in her 20s or watching her wedding (January 2025) photos go viral—not for what was missing, but for how she showed up as herself—Neehar, who has alopecia, a hair-loss condition, challenges traditional beauty norms and inspires a bold, expansive view of womanhood. Today, she continues to stand up for every girl learning to love what makes her different.