Suatu Malam di Bulan Ramadan Bersama Seorang Lelaki

Berusia 81 Tahun dan Memiliki Sebuah Salun.

Tahun 1937. Jika anda adalah seorang pegawai beruniform sama ada angkatan tentera atau

polis, satu ciri penting yang mengatasi pakaian anda adalah rambut dan yang digunting dan

dicukur pendek serta kemas. Di Malaysia, adalah tidak menjadi masalah untuk mendapatkan

kekemasan diri kerana seorang individu boleh memasuki kedai salun kecil yang terletak di

ceruk jalan dan hanya perlu membayar sekitar RM 0.50 hingga RM 1.

Hari ini, dalam kesibukan kota metropolitan Kuala Lumpur dan di tengah kesibukan Pasar

Seni.

Fast forward to the present, and amongst the bustling business of Pasar Seni, Kuala Lumpur,

you would find one such shop with a billboard titled "Stylo Barber Shop". Owned by the family

of P.A Thangaya who first migrated from India in the early 1930s, the family has continued

their time honored profession on Malayan stores over the decades. Despite calamities such

as fires, car crashes, economic slumps, their way of life has stood the test of time and its

business as usual, with Mr Madirajan Thangaya, who is the current owner of the shop, dutifully

serving his customers even watching them grow up from the children they were to the adults

they are now.

 (Left) The front of Stylo Barbershop

Step into their parlor and you might encounter an elderly gentleman who would tell you about

how he first visited the barber shop 50 years ago as a little boy, and has continued to be a

patron over 5 decades, disregarding the other boutiques and saloons to pay as little as RM20

for a hair cut and trusting only the staff of Stylo for a neat trim. This is more than a business,

as the circle of life is evident between the walls of their shop.

Interior of Stylo Barbershop

As their customers have aged, so have the owners and Mr Madirajan, son of the original owner

Mr Thanagaya, is now set to hand the reins of the business to his own son, Mr Madanan. The
third generation of owners will see the business grow further in his care, expanding to

branches in Kepong, Ampang, Pudu and Sri Damansara.

Mr. Madanan (left) & Mr. Madirajan (right)

A teenaged Canadian Tourist by the name of Justin Lee, hopped into the barber shop and

swiftly settled himself. During the interview, he said because of the strategic position and the

only barber shop near Pasar Seni of Kuala Lumpur he came to Stylo. A classic haircut, sides

shaved neatly and cut through perfection. He left the shop with a smile because of the service

and quality offered, “Be a barber that a client needs, not a barber that needs a client“.

Justin Lee right after his haircut.

 Justin Lee right after his haircut

The success of Stylo Barber shop and its ability to maintain relevant in the Barbershop industry

has not tainted their humble outlook on life and places the up most importance in giving back

to the community. In 2013, around the time of the general elections, they had an event

whereby free haircuts took place and it was open to everyone.

This year, the vintage shop embarked on a similar expedition, however, specifically targeting

a group of people that would benefit from it the most. The homeless. With the month of

Ramadhan upon us, Stylo Barber Shop took this opportunity to provide haircuts to the

homeless and give them a luxury that they can not afford.

(Starting from the left), Sanmukam, Senthikulmar, Veeragavan, Selvam

The “Potong Rambut Percuma” event was held on Friday 1st of June around 11:00pm, situated

in the heart of KL, right next to SEGI College. The turnout was an impressive amount with
over 100 homeless people showing up to receive hygiene kits and about 60 people partaking

in the free haircuts.

Many lining up for the hygiene kit and free haircut

Thousands of people take shelter in the streets of Malaysia, with only a few belongings and

sometimes just a cardboard box to call their home. DBKL reported in 2015 that around 2000

homeless people are present in the city.

Due to the overwhelming amount of homeless people, soup kitchens regularly distribute food

on a routinely basis. Yet, these people also face the disadvantage of being deprived of simple

necessities such as hygiene products and being able to get haircuts. Angeline Mutusami, a

67-year-old homeless women, gave her thoughts on the event stating that “there are a lot of

people distributing food, but not a lot that offer haircuts”.

The NGO, Gabungan Pelajar Melayu Semenanjung (GPMS), who worked in collaboration with

the barbershop to provide funding for the hygiene kit as well as providing volunteers for the

night, spoke of the event.

GPMS chairman of Selangor, Mohamed Khairul azman bin Abdul Azeez, commented “I’ve

been doing this for the past three years with my organization. And we found out that actually

that these people told us there is too many food. So from there we started to think maybe we

should do something out of the box, something different that we can still continue to contribute”