The launch of Dyson’s Airstrait in India feels like a chatty shindig.
Everyone is getting to know each other over the whirr of this heat-less straightener, while glasses of bubbly are being passed around in Delhi on July 4.
Yianni Tsapatori, Deepika Padukone’s hair stylist, is on stage discussing hair care and therapy, as he is straightening a model’s hair. Steve Williamson, manager of Dyson’s beauty commercial engineering division, is going over the technicalities of this machine for those with questions on hair types and voltage use. Both the ambassadors of this product, however, keep finding ways to reiterate three words: ‘no heat damage’.
It is evident why. This feature sets the product apart from the rest of the devices in the market. The promise is to provide a blow-dry look on a daily basis while retaining the strength and natural lustre of hair damaged with heat-based straighteners.
Does it deliver?
“I have painfully flat hair that tends to lose volume. This product has surprisingly stayed as styled,” says Harshini, a stylist, as she divides my hair in sections. A quick run-through proves that the Dyson Airstrait, priced at ₹45,900, works both as a dryer and a styling product. It is meant to be used on wet hair but can also be used on days when there is little time to go through the tedious process of shampooing and conditioning.
Steve says that this product has been six years in the making. The aim is to ensure that heat damage is prevented. They, hence, attempt to optimally use airflow and heat (below 150-degree Celsius) to avoid damage. “Using a regular straightener will cause the disulphide bonds in the hair to weaken. This results in irreversible damage, causing lack of lustre, tangling and several other long-term effects,” he says.
This device promises ‘no heat damage’ | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
The styling lasts for about six to 10 hours, based on the weather, as hair often reacts to humidity. There is also a blast-dry option and a cooling fixture to finally set the hair. Steve says that most people in India tend to have straight to wavy hair. Yianni says that it would make sense for those with frizzy hair to start close to the root for lasting results. Temperature on Airstrait can be adjusted. For those with extremely curly or permed hair, the product can be used for pre-styling. The Airstrait does not dry out the hair, nor does it leave a poker-straight finish, as with other straightners.
Celebrity hairstylist Yianni Tsapatori and Steve Williamson, manager of Dyson’s beauty commercial engineering division | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
There are limitations though. The Dyson Airstrait, like the Airwrap (launched six years ago), can only be used in the country that one purchases it in as voltage presents an issue. Steve suggests that one uses Dyson’s Corrale straightener instead while waltzing about the world. The product also does not offer a sharp-stylised finish as with other products that use heat. Yianni suggests using other products for setting, like serums and gels.
Despite this, the Airstrait comes across as a product that one would invest in as it makes daily hair styling easier and with less damage to the hair that is already impacted by thermal heat, pollution and chlorinated water.
Six years since Airwrap, Dyson’s last launch in Mumbai, India, it continues to dominate every ‘gift to get your significant other’ list. It is likely that the Airstrait will make it to the list too.
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