Piyali's Reviews > Eyeliner: A Cultural History

I have used eyeliner and/or kajal since I was in my teens to accentuate my eyes. I always felt and continue to feel to this day that darkening my eyes with eyeliner brings my face into focus. I like looking at myself in the mirror. Most of my baby pictures show my eyes lined with kajal with a black dot on my forehead to ward off evil eye. Being Indian, I grew up knowing the importance of kajol in both Hindu and Muslim cultures but I never knew about the various meanings, implications, and symbolism of this dark powder for eyes amongst different ethnicities, tribes, communities all across the world.