Where compassion cuts through scepticism & silence

Only the snips of scissors punctuated the silence as the man getting his hair cut, partly unaware of the happenings, finally seemed to develop a trust for the hairdresser and the group of volunteers who had expressed to help him out.

- P SRINIVASAN @Tiruppur

Squatted by the roadside, the unhesitating barber parted the homeless man's strands of hair that had not seen a wash or a comb in years. Tufts of unkempt grays and blacks hit the ground one by one, and when the barber was done, the scissors had also snipped away at the stigma. The volunteers then assisted the man in getting a bath and provided him with a meal.

Once or twice every month, mostly on Sundays, in Pothampalayam village along the border of Tiruppur district, the 45-year-old hairdresser, N Deivaraj, and the volunteers of 'New Deiva City Trust', one that he has been running since 2000, stick to the ritual – offering a free haircut to destitute people and individuals struggling with mental health issues, neglected by their families and the society, living on the roadside. The volunteers of the trust, which still operates out of a building unfinished due to lack of funds, besides providing free haircuts to homeless people, have also rescued, over the two decades, nearly a total of 5,000 individuals and assisted them in getting a place at a shelter home. The founder of the organisation said he has so far given free haircuts and a meal to around 35,000 such individuals.