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US-Based Software Engineer Says She Charges $100 an Hour as Mehndi Artist

Her Instagram clip highlights differences in pay, tipping and social respect for artisans between the US and India.

Overview

  • The Instagram video posted over the weekend shows Priyancka Jaiin saying she charges about $100 per hour for henna work and can earn roughly ₹1 lakh for a 10-hour bridal booking, with tips sometimes up to 20%.
  • Jaiin says mehndi is a side business and her main income comes from her full-time job as a software engineer.
  • Multiple news outlets repeated the figures but flagged that the claims come from user-generated content and have not been independently verified.
  • The post prompted wide online reaction that contrasted the reported US rates with commonly cited lower fees in India, where commenters noted typical charges of a few hundred to about ₹1,000 for similar work.
  • The coverage highlights how a social media post can shape conversations about gig earnings, tipping norms and the social value of artisanal work, and it could influence how clients and artists set expectations across countries.