As a Pakistani American Teenager, I Found Confidence in Kohl Eyeliner

Makeup HistoryAs a Pakistani American Teenager, I Found Comfort and Confidence in Kohl EyelinerIn some parts of the world, kohl is more than just an eyeliner. It is a spiritual practice, a cultural phenomenon, and for writer Iman Sultan, it is home.

By Iman Sultan

Photography by Stephanie Gonot

March 20, 2022

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Prop stylist: Samantha Margherita

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When I was 13 years old, I stood in front of the mirror and traced a rich black liner around the inner rims of my eyes. Before that moment I'd only been allowed to wear makeup for special occasions and parties, with my mother as the makeup artist, dabbing my eyes with kohl. They would quickly start to water and, as I blinked, the liner silhouetted my eyes with its deep, intense magic.

At 13, I was old enough to wield my own kohl eyeliner, Hashmi Kajal (kajal is the Hindustani word for kohl). The jet-black cream came in a red-and-black tube with a flashy gold applicator. If Pakistan had a national eyeliner, it would be Hashmi Kajal. In fact, it tends to be used by South Asians wherever they are, whether in India, diasporic communities in the Middle East, or in Queens. I've found it's also available in the United States, even though the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has banned any product with kohl or kajal as a color additive, including Hashmi Kajal. (The words kohl and kajal are used legally as marketing terms in the U.S., often to describe creamy, richly pigmented liners. But as a color additive, kohl and kajal — or other names it might go by, such as al-kahal, surma, tiro, tozali, and kwalli — are banned by the FDA.)

As a Pakistani American teenager growing up in a Philadelphia suburb, traditional kohl was a talisman of sorts. I looked different than almost everyone in my town. When I felt I didn't belong, lining my eyes with even the lightest touch of kohl instantly reminded me of Pakistan and made me feel confident in my beauty.

In the 13 years since I first lined my own eyes, I have expanded my makeup routine, but kohl has been a constant. By the time I was an adult, living and working in Karachi, Pakistan, I layered my entire face with foundation and bronzer, building a lacquered wall against the men I had to deal with outside the sanctuary of my grandmother’s home. But I still wore kajal, its lush pigment defining my heavy-lidded eyes.

Kohl is a magic spell, a declaration of intention, a will to power. After remaining in an abusive relationship, using kohl helped me gather the pieces and transform into myself again. Kohl was, and still is, a home for me. No matter where I am or what challenges I confront, it is an asset both humble and powerful.

I decided to dig a little deeper into the history, sacred practices, and controversies surrounding kohl.

In South Asia, kohl may be kept in small brass bottles. By Far tote. JW Pei bag. Jewelry, counterclockwise from top: Prounis chain, pendant, and ring; Sauer bracelet; Prounis ring; and Sauer ring. Prop stylist: Samantha Margherita

What Is Kohl?

When you see kohl or kajal used legally on the side of an eyeliner in the U.S., it is a marketing term meant to make you think of intense black pigments and creamy textures. But these liners are not made of traditional kohl's iron oxide pigments (with their signature black, red, and yellow tones). They are made of the same color additives in most modern eyeliners because of the FDA's ban on kohl color additives and potential health risks.

Traditional kohls have iron oxide pigments and can come in a few different forms: as a creamy stick or pencil, in a squeezable tube, or in a pot, similar to a powder. This last form is usually kept on hand for religious purposes, applied delicately with a clean finger or a separate applicator, but it may also be used as makeup if you're old school. (My grandmother keeps hers this way.) Traditional kohl is called "surma" by Muslims, who may use it for religious purposes; it may be worn as an eyeliner during Ramadan.

Traditional kohl has also been made at home: Ingredients like almonds or aloe vera may be burned using a clay lamp over which a clean plate (of bronze or copper, for example) traps the fumes. The soot that collects on the plate may be mixed with clarified butter or oil, creating kohl — and giving the material its creamy texture and sweet fragrance. This is how our grandmothers and great-grandmothers made cosmetic kajal, often keeping it in small brass bottles.

Regardless of how it is created, kohl, when used as a cosmetic, is applied on the waterlines of the eyes, making them look pronounced without trying too hard. "It's a no-fuss, easy product," says Natasha Ramachandran, a model in New York, who grew up in India. "You don't have a lot of makeup on, and kajal... it adds a little something to your face. A lot of women seek comfort in that."

The Kohl Conundrum

Throughout Africa, the Middle East, and South Asia, traditional kohl is a cultural and cosmetic staple, yet it is not without potential health risks: "The black iron oxide and pigments in most commercially produced kajal may contain elevated levels of lead," says Renuka Thergaonkar, PhD, a cosmetic chemist in Mumbai. "Prolonged application can cause excessive lead storage in the body, which impacts the brain."

The brain damage can lead to cognitive dysfunction and neurological disorders. In the U.S., the FDA has banned kohl as a color additive.

The Rich History of Kohl as a Sacred Practice

In South Asia, traditional kohl transcends surface-level beauty and is often used as a form of protection against the evil eye, a jealous gaze believed to cause fatalistic harm and injury. "Recently, I had a bride come to me for her makeup, and her mother told me to put a dot of kajal behind her ear [to ward off the evil eye]," says Syed Zubair, a Karachi-based makeup artist. 

In traditional households, newborns' eyes are delicately dabbed with kohl because of the widely held belief that it repels not just the evil eye, but the glare of the sun and some diseases. In Ayurvedic medicine, kohl is said to have healing properties for cleansing and rejuvenating the eyes, and practitioners use it to make preventative treatments for eye infections.

How to Use Kohl — Straight From Karachi

After rimming your eyes with liner (on the waterlines, instead of along the lash lines, is the classic way to use traditional kohl) "push a rich bronze shadow into the base of the lashes, and [add] an even softer color like dirty gold to create a diffusion," says Bina Khan, a celebrated makeup artist from Karachi. "It'll create the impression that your [liner] has smudged really nicely. "

Try one of these options that you can find in the U.S.: Kulfi Underlined Kajal Eyeliner in Nazar No More has all of the pigment but none of the smeariness of traditional kohls. Rituel de Fille The Black Orb Enigmatic Eyeliner comes in a pot reminiscent of traditional kohls (smudge it on with your fingers or a brush). Neither contain traditional kohl color additives, so both are legal in the U.S.

This story originally appeared in the April 2022 issue of Allure. Learn how to subscribe here.

To read more about global beauty:

• Editor's Letter: What Global Beauty Means Right Now
• 16 Best-Selling Beauty Products From Around the World
• Kulfi Beauty's Long-Awaited Kajal Liners Are a Celebration of South Asian Culture

And now, watch Winnie Harlow as she gives a tour of her beauty space:

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Iman Sultan is a writer and journalist on politics and culture. She grew up in Philadelphia and now resides in Karachi, Pakistan.Contributor

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