Introducing Rama Dwaj, Zoran Mamdani’s wife and an accomplished artist.
Rama Dwaj, an artist and wife of New York Mayor Zoran Mamdani, has decided not to campaign or speak publicly with her husband.
New York City’s first lady, Rama Dowaj, has become a bona fide “it” girl.
Since her husband’s historic victory on November 4, interest in the Syrian-American illustrator’s profile has only increased, from her fashion to her looks, and now fans are trying to imitate her signature hairstyle.
Since Zoran Mandani was ceremonially sworn in at City Hall on New Year’s Day, some young women paid tribute to Mamdani’s historic victory by getting what is known as a “Rama” cut.
“Welcome to Longisradesh,” Sanju Munni wrote in the caption accompanying a nine-second clip of the Rama-coded transformation.
Adding to the mystique is that Duwaj, like first lady Melania Trump and first lady Usha Vance, has kept a relatively low profile since Mamdani announced her candidacy for mayor in October 2024.
A week before her husband’s second swearing-in ceremony, Duwaj decided to “introduce” herself to the public in a “special issue” of The Cut, published on December 23, where she spoke candidly about her upbringing, career and relationships.
What is “Rama”?
According to Vogue magazine, Dowaj’s personality is “somewhere between a bob and a pixie,” and is sometimes referred to as a “vixie.”
Hairstylist Devin Toth of Salon SCK in New York City told Allure in late June that the “vixie”, originally a ’90s hairstyle, is becoming popular again. The reason for this is that “it feels like a more customized short hairstyle.”
Xavier Velazquez, who styled Dewaj’s hair on the big night, said Audrey Hepburn, Taylor Russell and Kelsey Asbir were all “helpful.”
“I was there to enhance it a little bit without taking away from the fact that she’s an artist who lives in Queens and air-dries her hair,” Velasquez told Vogue. “Rama is 28 years old. We didn’t want her to look like a typical politician’s wife.”
Velasquez’s decision to “level up” her look paid off, with some fans saying, “The new ‘It’ girl haircut just fell off,” while another user lamented to viewers that she couldn’t pull it off.
“‘Rachel?’ No girls…’RAMA.’ “Believe me when I tell you that the sexiest girl you know is trying this hairstyle…” said one user.
A young woman even said that Douwaji looked so much like the late Princess Diana that it was like the people’s princess reincarnated.
