Meet di Indian woman wey dey flaunt her moustache

One Indian woman wey get moustache don receive both appreciation and mockery from pipo online.

But she say she no dey worried abou all di interest around her facial hair.

"I love my moustache," Shyja wey be 35 years old tok, for her WhatsApp status section, below one foto of hersef.

Pipo wey see her foto for Facebook or meet her in pesin dey often ask her - why she dey keep moustache.

"All I can say be say I just like am. A lot," she tok.

Shyja, wey dey use one name, dey live for Kannur district for di southern state of Kerala. Like many women, she get dome facial hair above her lip for years.

While she dey regularly thread her eyebrows , Shyja say she neva feel di need to remove di hair above her upper lip.

Around five years ago, e begin to thicken into one visible moustache and Shyja wey dey excited decide to keep am.

"I no fit imagine living without it now. Wen di Covid pandemic start, I dislik wearing mask all di time because e cover my face," she tok.

Many pipo wey see her advise her to comot her moustache but Shyja refuse.

"I no ever feel say I no dey beautiful because I get dis or that or say na something wey I no suppose to get."

Dem dey often tell Women say facial hair no dey desirable and make dem pay to remove am - or tweak am into shape - regularly.

Hair removal products na multi-billion dollar industry with creams, wax strips, razors and epilators to help women wey no fit afford to pay for dem.

But for recent years, many women don begin choose to go against di norm by accepting and even taking pride in dia facial hair. For 2016, body positivity campaigner Harnaam Kaur become di youngest woman for di world to get full beard, according to di Guinness World Records.

For one interviews, she don often tok about how accepting her facial hair don be one important part of learning to love hersef in di face of bullying.

For Shyja, keeping moustache no be about making a statement, na just part of who she be.

"I just do wetin I like. If I get two lives, maybe I go live one for odas," she tok.

Some of dis attitude dey come from having battled health problems for years.

Shyja don go through six surgeries over 10 years - one na to remove lump for her breast, anoda na to remove cysts for her ovary. Her last surgery na hysterectomy five years ago.

"Each time I come out of surgery, I go begin hope say make I no get anything wey go carry me go back operation theatre again," shetok.

Overcoming multiple health crises only strengthened Shyja'belief say make she live her life in a way wey go make her happy.

Shyja say she be shy pikin while dhe dey grow up. Women for her village dey hardly allow pipo to see dem outside di house afta 6pm in di evening.

Though Kerala na one of India most progressive states, with high development indicators, patriarchal attitudes still dey happun for most areas, and women dey often discouraged from travelling or living alone.

Wen she get married and move to di neighbouring state of Tamil Nadu, Shyja say she enjoy discovering new kind of freedom.

"My husband go carry waka go work and return late. So I go sit outside di house for evening, sometimes go waka to di store alone for night if I need something.

No body dey care. As I learn to do things on my own, e dey build my confidence," she tok, adding say she dey try to pass on dis attitude to her teenage daughter.

Shyja family and friends dey supportive of her moustache. Her daughter often dey tell her say e look good on her.

But Shyja say she heard all kinds of remarks from pipo wey see her for streets. "Pipo dey make fun of me saying, 'na men dey get moustaches, why woman go get one?'" she tok.

Ova di years, she don feature for local media reports several times.

Recently, she say, she see several mocking comments for one article about her wey one local news outlet share on Facebook.

One pesin ask why she no take blade to her moustache wen e dey clear say her eyebrows dey threaded.

"But dis no be about wetin I like - what to keep and what not to?" she ask.

Shyja friends dey often use vex reply to all these comments for Facebook, but she say e no dey bother her at all.

"In fact, sometimes I look dem up to laugh at dem."