A day at the Barber shop !

Have you ever wondered how life would have been without a visit to the barber shop...ah the barber shop..a place where you catch up with latest celebrity gossip (with old stardust, femina, cosmopolitan ;) thrown around), read agony aunt columns without the fear of getting caught, listen to regional songs (region of the barber mind you) from an old radio which has more static disturbance than sound... a place where hair flies around from everyone's head like a bird freed from its cage that it brings a tear of ecstasy from a bald man's eye...

A visit on a sunday (the most auspicious day to trust your head with a man with scissors) offers the most satisfying experience you see...it starts with entering the outer sanctum extremely crowded by 'the regulars'..some of them hav a family history with the place as in my case..my family tree all the way till my grandfather all came to the same shop and so its become a family tradition. you will see several people so bald that only about 5 or 6 strands of hair remains on their head spread all the way from one side of the head to the other also waiting...it got me thinking why in the hell cant they just cut it themselves. After days of cranking my brain, i knew why...and i could relate to it more than anyone else. all men who suffer from hair-fall problem will just as well understand it...you see we middle class men have issues..first of all, we look like the missing link between humans and apes, then we are honoured with glasses and just when we think the worst is over, the hair gives up man ! so in an effort to find a shoulder to cry, we run around to friends who laugh their ass off, parents who shout 'told you not to use shampoo' and just about everyone on the street but to no avail. but a barber is different man...he listens to you, he consoles, he understands and genuinly gives you tips for improvement..bless the barber !

So you are waiting in the outer sanctum and just when you find a spicy article to read, you are ushered into the 'inner sanctum'..the holiest place in a barber shop. it is filled with hair everywhere but you dont mind and walk over it with hypnotic gaze and take your seat. you see getting a hair cut is not so straightforward as these guys cut more smelly hair on a sunday than wats left on your head..to get the best out of it, you gotta connect with the barber..you gotta feel him and he's gotta feel you. so you start with a big smile and say 'aaarama?' (are you doing good?). then you explain your hair to him (you have to show him how passionate you are about your hair even with whatever little is left..its like taking your car to a mechanic and explain how important it is to you). now you have got his attention and its time for a sucker punch ... you have to praise HIS hair for a fleeting second ! man from then on, he digs into your hair with such passion and precision that at the end of it, when you catch his eye in the mirror, you can almost see an orgasmic feeling !

so you walk out with thoughts of next time and a grin on your face...