Alka Hair Salon

Our shop, Alka Hair Salon, sits right on the Main Road on Shivaji Marg in Meerut. It is a very busy street with people and cycles constantly moving past the door. We are located near Sudhanshu Chowk, which is a big landmark that everyone in this part of town knows. I have been cutting hair in this neighborhood for a long time now. The shop is not anything special to look at, just a regular front with a wooden door that stays open most of the time. Inside, we have the usual mirrors and some old pictures of hairstyles on the walls that have been there for years. The sun hits the front of the shop quite hard in the morning, so it gets warm inside very early in the day. I usually keep the door open to get whatever breeze there is, even though the noise from the traffic on Shivaji Marg is very loud. Men from across Meerut stop by, some just for a quick shave before they head to the market. We use the old-style razors and keep the water in a plastic bucket near the chairs. I do not use any of those expensive machines you see in the fancy magazines. My hands know the work well enough after all these years. Sometimes the neighbors come in just to sit and talk, even if they do not need a haircut. It feels like a community spot.