Modern-day Afghanistan: a beauty academy opens its doors in Kabul and is so overwhelmed by applicants that a lottery system has to be instituted to award places. This is the reality that lies in stark contrast to recent times in Afghanistan, when the ruling Taliban forced women to be faceless. Covered by burqas and forbidden to show even the tiniest patch of skin, they lived in this oppressive atmosphere for six long years. But life has changed, and Afghan women are increasingly taking an interest in their appearance. Tracing the opening of the academy.