Do you plan on heading to a beauty salon anytime soon for some self care? Beware! That French pedicure or fruit facial you had in mind could just be how you end up supporting jihadis in the country.
Sounds ludicrous? Not if you followed Indian news.
Over the past few days, several Indian news outlets have aired unsubstantiated claims made by a Hindu right-wing group accusing Muslim men of indulging in “beauty parlour jihad”.
Yes, you read that right. After “thook jihad”, “vote jihad”, “land jihad” “population jihad”, we have a new jihad in town.
If the abovementioned right-wing outfit and the news outlets airing its claims without any scrutiny are to be believed, Muslims men are now manipulating their way into Hindu women’s hearts through a new variety of “love jihad” that supposedly blooms in beauty salons and wellness spas.
As much as the claims made by the right-wing group, Sri Krishna Janmabhoomi Sangharsh Nyas, sound divisive, misogynistic, patronizing, and downright mindless, the outlet means business. The president of the Mathura-based group, self-styled religious leader Dinesh Sharma Falahari has written to the Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath alleging an “international conspiracy” behind Muslim men working in women' s beauty parlours.
The outfit has alleged that Muslim men present them as Hindu men, cajole and marry female Hindu customers and later “sell them in foreign countries”. The group has even sought a ban on Muslim men working in women beauty parlours in Mathura. Several other right-wing groups have joined Falahari’s call for a Muslim ban in parlours.
Meanwhile, news channels and websites have aired Falahari’s claims without asking him to furnish any evidence to back his claims.
As calls for a Muslim ban in the beauty industry grows, it is pertinent to note that latest official data shows that the proportion for employed people or those seeking employment was the least among Muslims among all major religious groups. Among all religions, Muslims had the highest share of self-employment indicating their higher share in the informal sector in proportion to their population.
But as they aired claims of Muslims spreading “love jihad” via “beauty parlours,” news channels did not bother to speak to a single Muslim youth working in a salon. News channels did not show any concern about such claims endangering employment opportunities for working class Muslims.
Newslaundry looks at how news outlets fanned communal flames, vilified Muslim men and presented Hindu girls and women as foolish, gullible beings waiting to be wooed by Muslim men in beauty parlours.
Zee News
Leading the charge on “beauty parlour jihad” was Subhash Chandra’s Zee News.
“Krishannagri mein beauty parlour jihad?”
“Beauty parlour mein bhaijaan khel kar rahe hain?”
“Beauty parlour mein international saajish?”
These were some of the tickers Zee News aired on Tuesday in its “super exclusive” video report.
The channel aired Falahari’s claims without any counter questions. The right-wing leader did not have to furnish any proof for his accusations to get a platform on national television.
Falahari declared: “Ye log haath mein kalawa baandhte hain, maathe mein tika lagata hain. Hindi vesh dharan karte hain. Aur jo beauty parlour mein hamari jo behen beeityan jaati hain, unko behla phusla kar prem jaal mein phassa lete hain. ( These people [Muslims] wear Kalawa [sacred thread] in their hands, apply tika on their foreheads, and wear Hindu attire. And our sisters and daughters who go to beauty parlours, they [Muslim] seduce them and trick them into a love trap.)”
On the back of the allegations leveled by Falahari and his group, the Zee News narrator asked: “Kya make-up ke naam pe Muslim yuvak Hindu ladkiyon se international saajish kar rahe hain? (Are Muslim youth hatching an international conspiracy against Hindu girls in the name of make-up?).”
The channel also divulged details of the “modus operandi” Falahari claimed Muslim men allegedly used. It also aired similar views by other Hindu seers who supported Falahari’s demand.
Perspectives from the Muslim community, working class community, owners of beauty parlours remained completely missing from the channel's coverage.
This Zee News report on “parlour jihad” was sponsored by advertisers like Dollar Innerwear and Sempra.
NewsI8 India
At News18 India too, Falahari got a free hand at accusing Muslim men of running a “jihad” campaign in beauty parlours and Hindu women of being dumb enough to play into it.
On reports aired on News 18 Uttar Pradesh/Uttarakhand and News18 Rajasthan, the network got another seer to make unverified, bigoted comments against Muslim men. Hindu women fall prey to “different kinds of love jihads” in beauty parlours, claimed Acharya Satyamitranand.
He said: “Jitne bhi bhin-bhin parkaar ke salon aur beauty parlour khul rahe hain, us mein vidharmi mansikta ke log na-na prakar se Sanatan ki…Hindu samaj ki mahilayon ko jo hai…na-na prakar ke love jihad ka shikar ban rahe hain. (As many salons and beauty parlours are opening, people with heretic mindset making women from the Hindu society victims of different kind of love jihad.)”
While it showed several AI-generated visuals of men, one of them wearing a skull cap, attending to female customers in parlours, News18 India did not bother to speak to even one Muslim beauty parlour employee about the allegations levelled by Hindu-right wing groups.
Republic Bharat
Right-wings groups christened a new jihad and Republic Bharat couldn’t keep its hands away for long. The channel did a “ground report” on the issue and delved into the “concerns expressed by local women” in Mathura over the issue.
In its report titled “Mathura में 'Parlour Jihad' का नया दावा - प्यार के जाल में फंसीं लड़कियां | Love Jihad”, Republic Bharat spoke to a total of four women to claim that women in Mathura worried about instances of “parlour jihad” in the city.
One of the women Republic Bharat spoke to claimed that in her experience, Muslims “over-pamper” ladies while providing services like a pedicure or facial. “Because they are men, thakte bhi late hain thoda sa. Woh apne haath pairon se thoda sa zyada sukoon de dete hain kabhi kabhi. (As they are men, they don’t tire easily. Sometimes they provide a little more relief with their hands),” she reasoned.
She further claimed: “Uske baad kya hota, ki hum log, regularly sochte hain ki unhi se karawate hain…As a mature lady I can understand if they are going wrong. But in some case, jab ladkiyan teenagers hoti hain, or they just started to go to salons…fir kya hota hai, woh log unko pamper kar rahe hain, woh log unko kam fees mein zyada services provide kar rahe hain…unko keval ek laalach de rahe hain…ladkiyan fir unhi ke pass jaati hain…fir number bhi exchange kar lete hain kai baar…uske baad cheezein kharab honi hoti hai, ladkiyan agar kam samajhdaar hain, ladkiyan abhi nayi hai…toh unko kya hota hai fir…shaadi, love jihad, suitcase mein band hone waali seethti tak pahunch jaati hai. (What happens after that is we start going there regualrly…As a mature lady, I can understand if they are going wrong. But in some cases, teenage girls, or girls who have just started going to salons… They (Muslims) pamper them, provide them more services in less fees…Then the girls go to them…Then they even exchange numbers some times…After that things get spoiled. Girls who are not smart enough or are still young…Then end up in marriage, love jihad, or in a suitcase.)”
One of the tickers on the channel even claimed that “Hindu women were taken away to other cities for court marriages".
While the channel went into great detail about how “parlour jihad” was allegedly executed, it did not think that reaching out to one Muslim person to respond to such allegations was important.
Another Republic Bharat segment on “parlour jihad” had tickers like “Mathura mein ‘parlour jihad’ factory?”, “Beauty parlours mein ‘love jihad’?”, “Hindu ladkiyon ke picche kaun?”
Several social media users have called these channels for vilifying the Muslim community in the name of “beauty parlour jihad”.
Hello Mr. @subhashchandra, While you want 'Muslim Samaj' to believe that your Urdu channel Salaam TV is doing a favour to them, But here, your Hindi channel @ZeeNews runs a show "Beauty parlour Jihad" velifying the whole community. With or without Sudhir Chaudhary, Your Channel… pic.twitter.com/DrdKD0pt78
— Mohammed Zubair (@zoo_bear) April 15, 2025
Hi @subhashchandra, are you proud of this news on Zee? A hateful group demands a ban on Muslim staff in beauty parlours and Zee runs a show on "Beauty Parlour Jihad". And look at the images used. Your channel criminalises a community everyday. https://t.co/fTus3YvuGL
— Kaushik Raj (@kaushikrj6) April 15, 2025
Several memes ridiculing media channels for “beauty parlour jihad” have also surfaced on social media garnering thousands of views.
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