Glow with gratitude: In conversation with Pakistan’s first-ever Ken Doll

Adnan Zafar, in an interview with The Express Tribune, sheds light on taboos associated with skincare for men

KARACHI:

Every now and then, there’s news of a certain someone enhancing their facial features to look like someone else. In the past, we’ve seen a woman from Iran go under the knife to look like Hollywood star Angelina Jolie whereas another has gone above and beyond to look more like Barbie. Similarly, the Ken doll is also one of the most famous names in pop culture and many people have opted for plastic surgeries to look more like him. While most of these people are spread across the globe, Pakistan has its own Ken doll.

Hailing from Faisalabad, but currently residing in Dubai, Adnan Zafar refers to himself as Pakistan’s first Ken doll. And while he hasn’t gone under the knife as much as many other Ken dolls have, Adnan is still very much on-board with the idea of skincare, especially for men. In an exclusive interview with The Express Tribune, he spoke about venturing into skincare and why there’s no shame in taking care of yourself as a Pakistani man.

 

 

 

 

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A post shared by Adnan Zafar🧿 (@ken_doll_dubaiii)

“Everything good and pure about me is a reflection of my dear mother,” Adnan told The Express Tribune. “Her values and upbringing shaped me into the person I am today. People think that I'm pushing the boundaries and I'm being very edgy, but when they get to know the real Adnan, they realise that I am very traditional and very down to earth.” While Adnan didn’t say much about having a day job, he shared that his regular day involves meeting a lot of VIPs in the hospitality industry and having lots of coffee.

Speaking of venturing into skincare, Adnan revealed: “I was always into skincare. My mom had a salon and I was always so inspired by her that she was helping people to get to look better or look amazing in their skin. And that actually got into me. So I was always taking care of my skin ever since I was in school. There were times when people would ask me, ‘What do you do for pimples? What do you do for hair colour?’ I would always help them to enhance their looks and feel comfortable in their skin.”

 

 

 

 

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A post shared by Adnan Zafar🧿 (@ken_doll_dubaiii)

Adnan also shed light on how he got into the idea of becoming Pakistan’s first Ken doll. He explained: “I saw that there are a lot of people out there in different countries looking amazing, doing a lot of surgeries. But then we Pakistanis are blessed with incredible features. So I thought, ‘Why not do a little bit of touch up and get this thing going?’ And since I changed my username to this, I got a lot of exposure from the international skincare market. There’s also no other guy out there who's doing so much on skincare, especially collaborating with different brands, going to different clinics and all doing a lot of procedures.”

Despite living in Dubai, Adnan is a pure Pakistani at heart. Adding on to becoming the country’s first Ken doll, he said: “I thought that this is an idea that I can use to really make my country stand out in this field also. So whenever I go out to the international market and whenever I give speeches, I tell that I'm from Pakistan. And that people in Pakistan are really conscious about their skincare.”

 

 

 

 

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A post shared by Adnan Zafar🧿 (@ken_doll_dubaiii)

But in Pakistan, skincare or makeup for men is a very debatable topic. It’s mostly looked upon as a very feminine thing, to which Adnan quipped: “Why? Why do people think that men don’t need to take care of themselves? Don’t we have a face? Even a lion goes to the river to wash his face. Aren’t we living, breathing beings? Don’t we eat? Those are the same things that women do too. We’re in a time where women are equal to men which also means that men need to start taking care of their skin a little more too. It’s often only when the man is getting married that he realises that he needs to work on his skin, otherwise, not many bother.”

Despite being a very confident personality who owns himself, Adnan too has been a victim of hate comments at times. “I just don't care. You should do something that makes you happy. And you should not listen to people. I am open to criticism and consider their feedback if I feel it’s worth it. If you’ve got some haters, it means you’ve also done a good job. Till the moment you're keeping the public on their toes, you’re trending.”

 

 

 

 

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A post shared by Adnan Zafar🧿 (@ken_doll_dubaiii)

Adnan was recently invited by a clinic in Turkey that sponsored his trip and performed a rhinoplasty and a hair transplant on him. He feels that it made him even more famous. He continued: “If taking care of skin, doing makeup and going all the way to Turkey to get a nose job makes me happy, I don't care what the rest of the world thinks. I do what makes me feel confident about my look. I felt honoured to be invited for the collaboration.”

While Adnan has done several procedures to take care of his skin, he does not plan on overdoing it like Ken dolls across the world have. He added: “I don't think I require any more extreme procedures like other Ken dolls have. I believe in good skincare and aesthetic care, and regular visits to the dermatologist which helps me not to overdo things.”

Adnan, who’s more of an avid user of TikTok than Instagram, has over 450,000 followers on the former. He plans to start his own YouTube channel when his followers hit half a million on TikTok. He commented: “My YouTube channel which will help people to know me better. I will start working on it after Eid, inshaAllah, wherein I will be helping people with skincare tips, taking them inside my life in Dubai and a lot of positivity.”

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