While some men struggle to grow beards, here’s a 65-year-old woman who managed to sprout one that’s a whopping eight inches long. Her unusual facial hair has made Mukhtabor Toraeva a celebrity in her hometown of Turbat , in southern Kazakhstan. But what’s really bizarre is that she says the beard is the secret to her successful 42-year marriage.

“My husband married me when my beard had already started to grow,” she explained with pride. “He loves it and we now have a son, a daughter, and six grandchildren. Although beards run on my side of the family, my daughter does not have one and although both my mother and grandmother have them, they are not as fine as mine. Theirs reached only six inches.”

Mukhtabor said that she started growing her beard when she was 25 years old, and that people have always admired her for it. Her friends and relatives appreciate her, as do the strangers she meets when she travels to the neighboring Uzbekistan.

Photo: CEN

She added that people often want to take pictures with her to show to their wives or mothers.  “I would say my beard at least helps me to cross the border easily and without complications,” she added, cheerfully. And when the local media picked up her story, she became quite popular across the region.

Kazakh Women’s Rights campaigner Aisara Baiseitova said: “It’s really impressive to see such a genuinely lovely person so happy with the ways she looks. There is so much pressure on women today to look glamorous and sexy, and to shave every part of their bodies. Seeing and listening to this woman should be inspirational to all.”

She does have a point there – most women consider body hair unappealing and put themselves through painful procedures to get rid of it. So it’s refreshing to hear of Mukhtador and her husband, who seem to be quite happy about the whole affair.

Source: Vancouverdesi