Bandhu Hair Cutting Saloon

Ganganagar area. Doltala Bazaar is always loud. We are right there in the middle of it. Bandhu Hair Cutting Saloon has been a fixture here for quite some time. It is a simple place with a couple of chairs and some old magazines on the side table for people waiting their turn. The smell of aftershave is always in the air. We open up early because workers from the bazaar like to get a shave before the sun gets too hot. My hands are usually busy with scissors or a comb most of the morning. It is not a fancy setup with air conditioning that works all the time, but the ceiling fan spins fast. We know most of the people who walk through the door by their first names. Madhyamgram has changed a lot, but this corner stays mostly the same. Sometimes the kids from the local school come in for a trim and they can never sit still. We just do the basic stuff—haircuts, shaves, and maybe a head massage if someone has the time. The floor is often covered in black hair until we get a break to sweep it into the corner. It is a honest day's work in a busy market. The mirror has a small crack in the bottom corner that we never bothered to fix because it doesn't get in the way. We keep our tools in a wooden drawer that sticks sometimes.