I look forward to haircuts in Mumbai. On my first day there, I head to this little hole in the wall, two blocks from our house. I don't think it has a name. Getting my hair cut there since I was a scampering kid. The same guys are there – only a little older; the same chairs – only now I don't need a booster seat. Nayeem is the one to cut my hair!
He still uses a comb and scissors – no clippers! And his scissors fly over my head in a clickety blur. To clean behind the neck and above the ears, he dabs cool liquid from a refilled Old Spice bottle, then breaks an old fashioned razor blade, inserts it into a waakar, and wields it deftly. Then the best part. He pours Pancharatna – an ayurvedic oil on my head and gives me a nice massage. Easy to doze off in the chair. Hah! And all for slightly over a dollar. I give him two (100 rupees)!
This is Nayeem! The guy in the back is getting an old-fashioned shave. I tried it once and thought the skin had come off my face – that close! Always ready for my next haircut!
Marathoner, Professor, Author, Citizen Journalist, Fitness Nut, Foodie, Meera's father, Hindu, Scientist, Photographer.
[...] retireved it and defused it. That store there, is actually a muslim owned and run barber shop where I got my haircut just the day [...]