Fish eats man
A treatment for skin conditions has evolved into a ticklish pedicure that leaves your skin looking and feeling like new.
The Gurra Rufa fish are native to the river basins of the Turkey, Syria and northern Iran and for years have been traditionally found in the warm springs besides Turkish spas where they used to eat the dead skin of patients who suffered from psoriasis—a common skin condition. These fish eat the dead and diseased skin leaving the healthy skin behind. A normal pedicure would do the same thing, but this is au natural!
Which kind to get
There is only one kind. You go to the spa, take off your footwear, clean your feet and then dip them in the water full of fish and let them do their job. That said, Happy Feet, the people who run the service in the Capital will soon be starting a full body treatment. Much like those Turkish spas.
What happens
You stick your feet in a tub which you may share with other customers—don’t worry, there’s plenty of room. And then 800 fish—yes, 800—nibble away at your dead skin. Sometimes they jump out of the water. It lasts about 20 minutes. Since the Gurra Rufa don’t have teeth, there is no fear of the fish drawing blood or transmitting diseases. You ought to pass up the treatment if you have any cuts though. And if it’s the full body treatment you’re after, make sure you’re wearing Speedos and not shorts. Say no more.
What it feels like
Like a thousand feather dusters. The fish jaws and their fins as well as their bodies rubbing against your feet can send people into peals of laughter. You wonder if this is skin therapy or laughter therapy.
Where I can get one
These fish spas are available in Delhi, Chennai and Bangalore. A 20-minute course at Happy Feet in Delhi’s Select Citywalk Mall costs Rs 390, but expect the full body treatment to cost a lot more when it starts.
Contact: Happy Feet, Select Citywalk, Saket, New Delhi; M: 9891081081
