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Hakim Aalim
The term ‘barber’ has origins in the Latin word ‘barba’, which means beard. And a barber is someone who cuts men’s hair and beard, like I do. So I don’t see why I would be offended if someone calls me that. In fact, I am extremely proud to be a barber.
Most barbers, before protesting, didn’t dig the roots of the profession. A barber’s job was highly respected in early 1900s because they not only tended to the hair but did dental jobs and acted as messengers between villages that they travelled. In fact, it is the advent of hairstylists that affected the repute of barbers.
Sapna Bhavnani
What's the big deal in being called a barber? The very people who are complaining don’t seem to mind it when they enroll in courses that are titled as ‘Barbering Course’. What’s the big hullabaloo about now? I don’t think Red Chillies Entertainment needed to change the name and indulge these people.
Dilshad Pastakia
I do respect the sentiments of those who have been hurt but I also think it’s unfair to have brought it up a week before the release. Ours is a skilled profession and there’s dignity in all labour. Barbering is also an official term used for one of the modules in hair dressing courses. The word is a part and parcel of our profession. We have to understand that if we don’t respect our profession, no one else will.
On any given day when one refers to their local hairstylist as a nai, they’re not poking fun at them. The people who feel offended should understand this and let such emotions pass.
Savio Pereira
The community is raking up an issue unnecessarily. I grew up being called a hajaam by all my friends but that never upset me. You can call us nai, barber, hairdresser, hairstylist or a chic coiffeur; it won’t change what we do. We are glorified nais and grew up going to the street-side nai for a haircut before it became a stylish profession. In fact, I am pretty sure the first week will see people from our profession flocking to the theatres just to see if Irrfan (Khan) is holding the scissors right or not.
Javed Habib
I am the third generation in this vocation and I don’t see the point in the argument that it reeks of caste-based bias. Years ago, at a press conference a journalist got up and told me that at the end of the day I am a barber, a nai. If I start taking offence to such remarks it won’t get me anywhere. I belong to a family of hajaams. The fact is that I am a barber and will continue to be one, like my father and my grandfather were.
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