The Unforgettable Experience of a Bad Haircut

No, I won't be the only one who has regretted a haircut with a barber. Over the years, I have had some not-so-cute short hairstyles. However, I was sick of long hair and needed a change. Most of my hairdos weren't my best, but I went for it because you never know until you try. Rather than be scared of new haircuts, I'm someone who tries many styles.

My Childhood Experience with the Local Barber

Throughout my childhood, my monthly haircut was done by a local barber who specialized in men and boys. I was his only female client. The shop was named Sakthi Saloon and it was in our neighborhood. The one-eyed barber, who was the owner, used to cut hair and shave for all his customers. He would also play some good Tamil songs in his shop.

Whenever my mom would give standard instructions on how long my hair should be, the barber would follow it religiously to ensure the outcome would be decent. The standard haircut was called the Shalini Haircut, which had fringes in front.

A Close Call with a Stranger Cutting My Hair

One day, my mom was unwell and I went to the shop with my grandfather. To our surprise, the usual one-eyed barber wasn't there, and someone who resembled him introduced himself as his brother. While my grandfather gave the same instructions, my intuition told me something was off. My grandfather went to a nearby newspaper shop to buy magazines for my grandmother, leaving me alone with the "barber".

He started well but ended up cutting my hair unevenly. My grandfather noticed and quickly put a cap on my head, taking me home angrily. Upon reaching home, my mom and grandparents held a serious discussion about my "flop" haircut and finally decided to take me back to a boy cut by the only barber they knew.

The Aftermath of My Disastrous Haircut

With tears streaming down my face, I didn't like the boy cut and especially didn't want to go to Diwali looking like that. I didn't leave my house for the whole weekend. When I finally went to school the next Monday, everyone noticed my new "boy" look and made jokes: "Hey, who is this new boy?" "Are you Rajnikanth or Kamal Hassan?" - referring to popular Tamil actors, and "Hey, Harish, why are you and your brother separated? Where has he been all this time?"

I quickly went into the van and didn't look at anyone, burrowing my face in my lap for the entire ride to school. When I reached the classroom, my friends and even my best friends laughed. I had to explain the weekend incident to them, and I remember not looking into the mirror for more than a month. I bought myself jeans and t-shirts for Diwali to match my disaster haircut.

The Journey Back to a Decent Look

It took about four months for my boy cut to grow into a decent look, but it wasn't easy. Eventually, my confidence returned, and I was able to blend in again.

While I don't have a picture of that disastrous haircut, years later, I did have another experience with a bad haircut that turned out to be a good one. This story is one of the lessons that I've learned from those experiences.

Thank you for reading.