Ramani Fernando launches biography
Style and beauty icon Ramani Fernando launched her much anticipated biography recently, at an event surrounded by family and friends and attended by the country’s biggest names in the fashion and beauty industry.
The biography ‘Ramani Fernando’ was formally launched at the Colombo Hilton last week to a gathering of intimate well wishers, doyens of the fashion industry and all those who have been by Ramani’s side on her journey towards becoming one of the country’s most respected, celebrated and sought after professional hair and beauty consultants.
The biography, ‘Ramani Fernando’ takes readers on a touchingly personal journey of Ramani’s early years, from her childhood in a close-knit family to her years as a budding and talented hairdresser and entrepreneur, culminating in her widely acknowledged status as the queen of hair and beauty. Filled with personal glimpses, public triumphs, amusing anecdotes and expert advice, the biography treats readers to the story of Ramani’s life and an insight into the woman behind the celebrated Ramani Fernando brand. Exceptionally well written, beautifully designed and featuring Ramani’s personal memories and photographs, the book is a fitting reflection of Ramani’s own graceful style.
Following the tone of the biography, the launch cocktail at the Colombo Hilton was in itself a statement in sophisticated elegance, warmth and sociability.
An introduction by Ramani paid tribute to all those who had stood by her on her journey, with special mention of Unilever and the Sunsilk brand, which has been a prominent partner in her professional journey for over two decades. An address by Dila Hettiarachchi, long-standing client, close family friend and author of the biography followed, as she recalled the beginnings of the biography and its progress from a germ of an idea to the eventual publication, keeping the guests amused with her vivid recounting of the many intricacies involved.
Speaking at the event, Unilever Chairperson Shazia Syed recalled Unilever’s long partnership with Ramani. “It is a pleasure to see the care that women in Sri Lanka take with regard to their personal appearance and grooming, and this in no small part is due to the efforts of those like Ramani in the fashion and beauty field. Ramani’s commitment and dedication to her profession and her insistence on the highest standards of service and quality perfectly embody Sunsilk’s values and its mission to deliver the best hair care solutions to all women.”
Ramani’s daughter Rashika spoke to the gathering about her mother, and her hero. Telling guests that ‘my mother is the person around whom our family revolves’, she recalled life in the Fernando household as being full of love, laughter and special moments, many of them ‘inevitably centred around the subject of hair’. She also paid tribute to Ramani’s husband Ranjith, who she described as Ramani’s ‘rock, and the secret behind her success’.
The highlight of the event was when Ramani’s granddaughter gave guests a sweetly touching take on Ramani, as she spoke of a grandmother she admired for her style and loved for her tenderness. She left guests laughing with her final comments as to how she was glad her Achchi had published a biography and not a cookbook, ‘because Achchi can’t cook!’
The first copy of the biography was presented to Chief Guest First Lady Shiranthi Rajapakse. Copies were then presented to Unilever Chairperson Shazia Sayed, Ramani’s long-standing staff, close friends and grandchildren, followed by an evening of socialising.
