Why do women would like to look beautiful? This question has different answers in different parts of the world, but in my country there is only one answer, they want to impress men! This answer has become a part of the personality of a fashionable and stylish woman in my society. Thus, men and other women judge women based on their looks and what they have in mind – impressing men.

However, if you ask me, as a fan of modern dressing style, my answer is totally different. There is logic behind dressing style of each person. There is an image you have about yourself in your mind. To look like that Image is more like being yourself. In male dominating countries, male rules make men more confident and their easier because there is no restriction for their dressing style. They can dress any way they want. You can see a man wearing a turban and traditional clothes and doing great in business or life, or you can see another man wearing a suite and demonstrate high achievements in this life.

This logic is exactly the same about women. We try to look the way we imagine ourselves in our minds, but most of the time we are not able to look as we want. That is where we feel like not being allowed to be our own selves while the society needs our contribution in various areas of life. This cause women to accept the social pressure easily, and gradually lose their confidence.

My dressing style is my image in my head. The more I look like my mental image, the more my confidence level rises. It is not to impress a man or to show off, it is to look pretty and confident the way I want, and this is the logic that applies to most of my successful friends in my country.

Susan Atai 

Founder of ADIB- Afghan Development and Inspiration Bureau