Learicia Mahabir rocks her afro as Miss Piarco

Learicia Mahabir didn’t see beauty as having an afro and struggled with that throughout her life. She now confidently wears her hair naturally. PHOTOS BY SUREASH CHOLAI -
Learicia Mahabir didn’t see beauty as having an afro and struggled with that throughout her life. She now confidently wears her hair naturally. PHOTOS BY SUREASH CHOLAI -

The story of Learicia Mahabir’s hair is the story of many a Caribbean girl.

At the age of 12, her thick hair was relaxed.

While any mothers used chemical treatments to make their daughters' hair "manageable", Mahabir's mother was hesitant to do so. But she insisted her hair be relaxed to "feel prettier".

Her mother agreed, and for more than ten years, relaxed hair was all she wanted. Being the daughter of a black woman and East Indian man, Mahabir often felt she needed to look a certain way, and have a certain hair texture because of her last name.

It was only last December that she stopped straightening her hair. She had it cut and kept it braided as her hair grew. She was not sure how people would react to seeing her with natural hair, and felt braids would be better accepted at first.

A few months later, in March, she decided to audition for the 2020 Miss World TT pageant. It was this experience that made her fully accept the beauty of her voluminous afro.

“I was going to wear my hair in braids for the casting of Miss World, but I had a mentor who questioned my decision to wear braids and asked about my natural hair.

“When I took out the braids, my mentor said I had a beautiful afro. He then advised me to go to Miss World TT with my natural hair,” Mahabir, 23, told WMN.

Sceptical, she went forward in auditioning to represent her hometown of Piarco without braids. The response to her natural look was the opposite to what she expected. People loved it, she said.

“I didn’t see beauty as having an afro, so I struggled with that throughout my life. I was doubtful because it was something new to me. At the audition, everyone was in love... and gave me to confidence to wear my afro.”

Accepting her natural beauty was an important moment for Mahabir, who was inspired by Trinidadian Janelle “Penny” Commissiong, the first black woman to win the Miss Universe pageant in 1977.

“I remembered seeing a picture of Ms Penny... I looked at her and I said, 'she looks like me'. It was empowering because back then beauty was seen to be silky hair, light skin and coloured eyes which wasn’t me.”

She feels empowered now, though a bit said she was the last to see the beauty of her natural self.

Learicia Mahabir has entered the Miss World TT pageant, representing Piarco. -

“You need to always believe in yourself. Even if you can’t see what is within you sometimes, everyone sees it and sometimes you are the last to see it which is a tragedy.”

Sadly, in some spaces, Mahabir believes her hair will be frowned upon and deemed unprofessional. For this to change, she said traditional concepts of beauty and professionalism must continue to be rewritten. With numerous instances, both locally and internationally, of students being reprimanded for wearing natural hairstyles, Mahabir said this must change.

In TT, she is calling for a reform of the education system to allow natural hairstyles to be worn freely.

While many know her as “Riece”, Mahabir is now adjusting to a new name – Miss Piarco. She is supported on her journey by her friend and Miss World TT 2012, Athaliah Samuel.

“I was telling her that I wanted to go up for the pageant and she sent me the link. I really joined (Miss World TT) because I wanted to be in a pageant from ever since, so I said let me go for it.”

She is using the moment to promote health and wellness through the pageant's beauty with a purpose initiative. Her focus is on diabetes in TT.

“I realised I needed to do something I was passionate about. It really had to mean something to me. That’s when I created my project which is called Catch a Fish or Learn to Fish.”

The project is in memory of her favourite uncle who died in 2009 from complications due to diabetes.

She is helping people with Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes learn more about managing the disease, and also wants to bring pre-diabetic people and the general public into the fold.

Mahabir has been an ambassador for the Diabetes Association of TT and assists with several of the association’s outreach events to diabetics.

“The goal is to empower people who already have diabetes so they can manage it better and also, to prevent other people from getting diabetes.”

A nutritious, balanced diet is the key to dealing with diabetes, she said. But she know a healthy diet can be costly making it inaccessible to some.

Learicia Mahabir says, ‘You need to always believe in yourself. Even if you can’t see what is within you sometimes, everyone sees it and sometimes you are the last to see it which is a tragedy.’ -

So, part of Mahabir’s project is helping people set up grow boxes to grow their own food at home.

The initiative will help diabetics with their meal plans, and promote health eating among non-diabetics.

To make the initiative a success, Mahabir needs all the help she can get. From pieces of board to seedlings, she welcomes all donations. She said partnerships with health facilities across TT are also being explored. On Friday, Mahabir launched a focus group on diabetes in the Arouca Health Centre chronic disease clinic.

Working as a medical sales representative, training for the pageant, and keeping on top of her project requires time management, and moments to relax, she said.

“I play with my parrot (Molly) and guinea pig (Max). Last month, my next guinea pig named Ruby and rabbit named Kibbles died. I was so sad.”

Her support system of family, friends, pageant sisters and coaches are always nearby on her toughest days. Miss World TT franchise-holders, Brian Gopaul and Reiaz Mohammed, are also making the experience a fulfilling one.

“I love them dearly because they invest so much time into us, are understanding and accommodating. It’s unreal to see that you now met love you so much like parents.”

Due to covid19, the dates for the local and international finals are yet to be decided but training continues.

Regardless of the outcome, Mahabir has several plans in the works.

She has a bachelor's degree in biology and biochemistry and is saving for postgraduate studies. For now, the choice is between forensic toxicology and medical biochemistry.

In 2017, she volunteered at the Forensic Science Centre in St James and had the chance to interact with the centre’s former pathologist Dr Valery Alexandrov. Last year, she registered a business Juvenescent and recently started production on body soaps which she hopes to launch soon.

“My main goal is to continue becoming a better version of myself. I want to say that I have empowered a lot of people who will continue to empower others.

“I’ve learnt than I am resilient. That one trait is very important to have in a world with so many unexpected situations every day.”

Anyone interested in supporting Mahabir’s Miss World TT journey can do so by following her on Instagram @leariciamahabir.mwtt2020 or on Facebook at Learicia Mahabir MWTT 2020- Miss Piarco.

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"Learicia Mahabir rocks her afro as Miss Piarco"

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