Mumbai: Hairdresser gives free haircuts on final day of just concluded Bandra fair

As hairdresser Thomas Fernandes put down his scissors on Sundaymdashthe final day of the Bandra fair he had earned his rest The hairstylist had finished ldquoat least 30 haircuts from 330 pm till 1030 pmrdquo ldquoI was giving free haircuts on the first Sunday of the fair and the last Sundayrdquo he said Fernandes has a salon called Thompsun Hair lsquonrsquo Makeup Studio at Chapel Road in Bandra West which is enroute to the Bandra fairThompsun believes his craft is an artThomas who is also known as Thompsun to many and referred to by this name from now on in this report said ldquoI started using the Thompsun name during a work stint in Abu Dhabi many years ago When I used to say Thomas Fernandes many Indians would ask me why do you have two surnamesrdquo He laughed as he said ldquoMy penchant for haircutting began I think when I was 12 years old My sister training to be a stylist gave me a bad haircut at home when I was 12 I told her that if I ever became a stylist I would be a better one than herrdquo For Thompsun a haircut is more than a haircut ldquoIt is a confidence booster I see clients come into my salon at times anxious a little down in spirit or just a little nervous A haircut can transform you I like that zip and spirit clients display right after they leave post a haircut Seeing that makes me confident toordquoAlso read Bandra Fair Musttry food items around Mount Maryrsquos BasilicaChair fairThe free haircuts at the fair are a gift thanks and dedication to Mother Mary ldquoWe are asking so much from her it is time to give back I thoughtrdquo said Thompsun For this fair the experienced stylist working in the field for 28 years put a free haircut sign outside his salon on the mirror and a chair placed just outside on the pavement so that people know he is offering free haircuts Through his hairstyling career Thompsun 50 had several workspaces across Bandra ldquotill I got this my grandfatherrsquos place given to me by my family as my own place for a salon I have given free haircuts earlier too preCOVID at the fair where I used to install a hairstyling chair underneath my home PostCOVID I decided to offer the services just outside my salon so that it was more convenient and I had easier access to haircutting accessories and toolsrdquoAll smilesDavid Vaz who was visiting the fair on the last day said ldquoI was passing through Chapel Road on my way to the fair on Sunday evening I glanced up and saw a gent giving a haircut to a lady just outside a salon On one side of the space I saw there was something written Free Haircuts Only Today I stood to watch and I thought to myself he seems extremely skilled He finished the haircut within 10 minutes and she was all smiles thanking him profusely after the haircutrdquo Vaz recalled ldquoI spoke to Thompsun and he said I prayed it does not rain today Sunday as I only give haircuts on the Feast Day Sunday and the last day of the fair Seems even the weather gods were pleased with him Way to go Thompsun I thought to myselfrdquoThe legacyThompsun teaches hairstyling to students too and believes his legacy will live on through the many heads that turn as clients leave his salon ldquoI also teach my students that if you love what you do and you love yourself then everything falls in place It is not always dress to impress but tress to impress toordquo signed off the lsquoBandra boyrsquo who averred that the different people who walk into his salon are a lens through which he sees how the western suburb has transformed through his years as a child and now a professional30Approx no of haircuts he gave on Sunday