Once a client who was a good friend and from a well off traditionally cultured family , took me into confidence he was very disturbed , he had one son , he wanted his son to get into his business expand it ,, but the truant son had other plans he was hell bent on learning hairdressing ,, which in terms of my friends family meant hajam barbers down the lowest order and social stigma .
I told my client to allow his son to do what he wants to do provided he continues with his higher studies too, his son called me and thanked me ,. and was going to be apprenticed to a celebrity salon stylist ,,
After that I lost touch with the family ..and for many years my childhood friend Corrie Walia worked on my hair , he never took a dime and did some of the weirdest designs that had my mom freaking up the wall.
So perhaps all this adds up to my fascination of shooting barbers , I cant resist shooting street barbers , their simplicity , humility and their softness of tone ,,unlike some social barbers who go on chatting gossiping and dropping names of Bollywood actors ,
The street barber is an enigma ,,and there are times I have seen him sitting under a tree dejected no client no work.. and I felt sad form him and these selfless souls dont take charity.,.
Near my house a salon guy kept young boys and I called this young genius of a kid Biloo Badshah he was 11 year old and a master at shaves and haircuts including the best tel malish,,
He left the salon never came back to Bandra Bazar Road,
I shot him prolifically all his pictures in my barberism set ,, and there was another barber very good , he worked at Rolex a lot of people got their hair cut styled by him , but than he took to heavy drinking and last I saw him begging on the road ,, he later died unsung..
