Village headshave (offering in field) Part 3

Shobha’s Shave
Shobha followed Kamala to the shaving stool and sat down on it. All eyes were on her thick knee length plait as she walked up the aisle between the carpets. She tried to avoid stepping on the shorn hair on the floor, but it was not possible as the breeze had scattered some of the locks. She felt Kamala pick up her plait as she sat down.

She put her hands in her lap and waited for them to begin. Kamala’s heart was beating very fast as she picked up Shobha’s plait and slid the scissors into it for the ritual cut. She made the snip and held the plait up for her husband to cape Shobha. Vijay shook out the cloth that had covered both Balamma and Jayanti. It was pretty damp from the wet hair. He called one of the servant girls who had accompanied them and asked her to dry it in the sun. He then took out a fresh sheet for Shobha and covered her with it. Shobha bent her head as he tucked in the
ends.

 Kamala looked at Vijay and smiled at him. “I’ll cut her plait,” she said. “Fine,” agreed Vijay and waited. Kamala tightened her grip on Shobha’s plait and bent her head down like she saw her husband do on Jayanti and Balamma. Her victim was placid and bent her head obediently. She ran her hand along the sacrificial plait a couple of times and then took the scissors. Shobha waited, and so did the audience. The scissors were put to her plait and Kamala hesitated. The plait swayed in a slight breeze. Shohbha started to lift her head, but Vijay put his hand on her head and held her down.

The tension was getting to be unbearable for her. "Go on, Kamala, cut her plait off." said Balamma. Kamala felt the feeling of pity pass and broguht closed the blades. The sharp new scissors sliced into the plait and slid back. Once the first cut was made, she began to cut and slice through the thick plait. Now she began to enjoy every second of this and she was revelling in every cut and every slice that the scissors took in Shobha’s hair. She saw a fine sprinkling of hair settle on the cape and she continued to hack through the plait. Her husband held Shobha's head
down for her while she continued to cut away.

Shobha felt the scissors bite into her plait. Soon the dead weight on her head would be gone. She looked at the pristine whiteness of the cape that covered her. Her head shook slightly from the vigorous chopping at the base of her plait and the pressure of the barber's hand holding her head down for his wife. She felt the scissors cutting through and with a final snip the plait came off. Kamala looked at the plait that she had just cut off. It felt really heavy. She coiled it around her hand and dropped it in the basket where it fell on Jayanti’s plait. She looked around to see Vandana already seated on the preparation stool waiting for her.

There was stunned silence from the first timers in the visiting audience who had just seen two over four foot long plaits cut off so ruthlessly. They were expecting a quick shave, but clearly, that was not on the agenda. And neither was Balamma objecting to this, because it was tradition to let the barber shave as he saw fit. Wearing an orange sari, Vandana was sitting on the stool, watching Kamala chop off Shobha’s plait.

This was the fourth time for her as well, and she knew what was coming. She was resigned to her fate as Kamala joined her. She felt Kamala gather up her
hair. The knot she had tied mid-back was pulled free and Kamala now held her waist long hair. Kamala was a bit disappointed.
Nevertheless she picked up the comb and started to comb out the thick hair.
Vijay was busy combing out the rough bob his wife left behind. This one would be a dry cut. He bent Shobha’s head down and to the right. Standing on her left, he used the comb to separate a section of hair near her temple and lift it up. Holding it apart, he snipped it down to an inch in length. A section of hair dropped into Shobha’s lap. He continued to work his way towards her ear, sending a rain of black silky hair to into her lap. Shobha watched a little dismayed at the hair piling up in her lap. She had expected a quick shave, but she also knew that it would be the barber’s wish to shear as he pleased.

As Kamala combed out Vandana’s hair, she cast an eye about the rest of the flock waiting to be shorn. There was one more woman with her hair in a loose knot hanging in the middle of her back, and another woman with her hair in some sort of bun, but with the pallu of her sari over it, so she couldn’t make out what it was or how long her hair could be. Then there were five more girls. Two of them had twin plaits, two of them had their hair in clip, and one of them had a plait. She let out a small sigh and continued the combing. Her eye drifted back to the stool where Shobha was getting a shearing.

Vijay worked steadily at Shobha's hair, dilligently cutting it short. He crossed her sideburns, and reached her ear which he folded with the comb while getting at the hair behind it. Once he reached the crown from her right side, he moved over to her left and continued to shorten her hair down to an inch. She sat obediently, bending her head to the barber’s wishes. Her lap was filling up with thick silky hair, about seven inches long. She slowly lifted her hands and sent a mound cascading to the floor at her feet. But soon, the pile began to grow as the barber reached her right ear. She saw some of the locks of hair being blown about in the breeze. She caughat a glimpse of her plait in the basket, lying on top of Jayanti's plait with the loose end sticking out. She felt a pang of sorrow. One of the servant girls ran forward with a small broom and a basket in response to a signal from Balamma.

Quickly sweeping the shorn hair into a pile, the girl stuffed it into the basket and put it beside a pillar. Moving behind her he bent her head down till all she could see was her lap. The comb then ran up her nape and the scissors were happily chopping at her hair as more hair rained on her shoulders and on the barber’s feet. Slowly he cut his way to the crown of her head. Kamala gathered Vandana’s hair at the nape and started to twist it into a bun. She had already decided that Vandana would be
straight shaved. No sense wasting time with the scissors. Her own hair was down to her knees and tied in a thick tight bun.

She was almost wishing she was on the stool being shorn by her husband. She would have to wait a week for that. Vandana had no idea about the plans for her hair that were going through Kamala’s head. She was watching in resigned horror at Shobha’s shearing, and the locks of hair that were being blown about in the breeze. Vijay refilled the sprayer and began to mist Shobha's head. She sighed inwardly as she knew the razor was not far away. She was right. A new blade was broken and inserted into the razor. She felt the barber stretch her scalp at the crown and shave a stripe right down to her forehead.

Vijay moved quickly, pausing now and then to wipe the blade. He followed the same method as Balamma, cleaning up the stubble left behind by the scissors. Straight down from the parting down her sides. First over the temple, straight strokes taking him to her sideburns, and then behind the left ear. Stop, move to the right, and start again from the temples. Quick careful strokes, taking care not to nick her. The last vestiges of another Indian rapunzel's crowning glory were being swept aside in quick strokes of the razor.

Shobha liked the way the razor was gliding over her head scraping away her hair. She liked both long hair and a shaved head, so she was happy with the end result. She watched the tiny clumps of wet hair rain on to the cape. Kamala had tied Vandana's hair in a firm bun at her nape, and was holding the bun. She liked the way Shobha was being cleaned up. The dark patch that was the remaining hair shrank away as Vijay reached the back of her head. A last few strokes down her nape and she was done. The barber uncaped her sending some more hair to the floor.
Shobha got up and wet to join the shaved women, while Vandana was escorted to the stool.

The watching women wondered how she would be shaved, and who would be next. "Sandhya..." called out Balamma. Shreya watched with trepidation as her mother,
wearing a light green sari got up and went to the preparation stool. Vandana pulled her sari around her waist and sat down. Vandana was brought to the shaving stool. She was pretty nervous and high strung. She never did like getting shaved, but her
mother-in-law had insisted upon it. With no other choice, she had travelled to the village to lay her hair down for the third time in her married life. After seeing what Shoba and Jayanti had gone though, her nervousness had increased. She bowed before the godess and sat down on the stool. She closed her eyes and prayed for the godess to make it quick. She felt the barber cover her with a sheet as he had done the others. Moments later, something hard enter her hair at the crown and heard a snip.

Kamala had made the ritual cut, and in doing so, indicated to Vijay that Vandana's hair was to be shaved directly. In a way, her prayers had been answered. Barely six months ago, Vandana had walked into a beauty parlour with a knee length plait with a friend and asked for a trim. Unknown to her, the friend, who was envious of her hair, had talked the hairdresser into cutting off more than half the length. The hairdresser for her part, claimed a misunderstanding, but then, nothing could be done. Her mother-in-law, who had earlier consented to Vandana skipping the visit this time, had been furious. The breach was only healed after she promised to visit
the village and get her head shaved.

She heard Kamala walk away to attend to her next victim. She heard the now familiar squirting of the sprayer. A shiver ran down her spine as the cool mist hit the top of her head. She felt the dampness run down her cheeks and Vijay patting her head to let the water soak in. She wondered if she was lucky enough to be shaved directly. A shadow passed her closed eyelids and she realized that she was being caped with a sheet. She obediently bent her head and felt the ends being tucked around her neck. She opened her eyes. The sight of a summer breeze playing with Shoba's shorn locks greeted her eyes.

She swallowed hard as the barber moved in front of her. She closed her eyes and felt the barber's hand on the crown of her head again. He was pushing her head
back gently, raising her head. Moments later, she felt something touch her scalp near her hair parting. And then she heard the razor scraping away. Starting from her hair parting, down her left temple, all the way to her side burns and down her cheek. The next stroke followed the same path, but higher. Hearing the sound of the razor inside her own head was something she was not quite accustomed to. She felt like she was being combed with a razor. The strokes kept moving up, but stopping near her ear.

Slowly they reached the end of the parting, and the direction was now mirrored. The barber started working on her right side, bending her head slightly to get a better angle. She felt the wet hair slide and settle on her shoulders and the wetness of the hair seep through the sheet and reach her skin. She kept her eyes tightly shut as the strokes continued to lay bare her scalp. The cool breeze from the orchard sent shivers up and down her spine as it caressed her freshly exposed scalp. The strokes stopped and she felt the barber push her head down.

She obeyed till her chin was touching her chest, and all she could see was the wet sheet covering her. She worked up enough courage to open her eyes. She looked about and saw the baskets containing the offerings. Suddenly she heard the sprayer again as she felt the mist hit the back of her head. Her scalp tingled as the mist hit the exposed top as well.

The barber's fingers were massaging the water into her scalp at the back. The spraying stopped and she felt the barber's hand on her shaved scalp, holding her head down. The razor was back in moments, working its way down the back of her head, towards the knot at her nape. Her eyes moved towards the baskets beyond the barber. There was some kind of morbid fascination for her as she looked at one basket containing the shorn hair. Without even thinking she sought out the other basket. She could make out Jayanti and Shoba's plaits in there. She also saw locks of hair clinging to the barber's trouser legs and feet Meanwhile, the razor was making short work of her hair.

In the expert hands of the barber, her ordeal was almost coming to an
end as more and more hair was stripped off her scalp. Held tightly by the knot, the hair could not fall anywhere. She felt her neck and shoulders get uncomfortably wet under the sheet. She felt the razor stop a few inches short of her nape and stop. The barber then began to examine her head. A minute later, he started shaving again and let out an inward sigh. It had been quick. The last few strokes ran down her neck as the barber cleared the knot from her head. She felt the knot removed from her shoulders and looked around. She saw the barber's wife drop it into the basket. She heaved a sigh as the barber removed the sheet covering her. She got up and ran her hand over her bare scalp unable to believe it. As she walked back to her place, she saw Sandhya being seated on the stool.

Sandhya had sat down on the stool after the barber's wife joined her. She was looking forward to the shave, but was also nervous. The nervousnes was because she had missed the last time. Well, not entirely a miss as her cut plait was sent to the
temple, but still it was not a shave and she was worried about what would happen. Kamala gathered up Sandhya's hair at the nape and ran her fingers through, pulling the knot loose. The thick, black, slightly curly locks fell about six inches past the stool. She stroked the hair a couple of times more trying to decide what was to be done with Sandhya. Taking the comb from the waist band of her saree, she started to run it though the locks that she held so firmly. She saw her husband starting to shave Vandana. She knew that she did not have too much of time to think.
Quickly she split the hair into three sections and started to weave a plait. Sandhya's hair was certianly thick.

And, it would take some time to cut it short with scissors. She loved to hear the scissors sinking into thick lush hair. But dry cutting was out of the question as the breeze was picking up. If cut wet, atleast the hair would hold together till it went into the basket. She tried to work a bit fast to ensure that she would have Sandhya ready before her husband finished with Vandana. Sandhya's hair was really silky and she would have loved to play with it a little more. She started to plait the hair. She looked up to see her husband working on the back of Vandana's head. He looked up just in time.

She gave him a quick signal to show she needed a couple of minutes more. He smiled in acnowledgement and stopped to examine Vandana's scalp. Kamala worked faster to finish the plait and secure the end with an elastic band. She gently nudged Sandhya to get up. Seeing them get up Vijay resumed shaving Vandana. By the time they got to the offering stool, the last few  strokes were made. Kamala picked up the wet knot and dropped it into the basket. Vijay took off the sheet and Vandana got up.

Sandhya bowed to the godess and took her place on the stool. She would be happy for the offering to start straight away. She felt Kamala lift her plait out of the way as the barber covered her with a fresh sheet. The barber moved aside for Kamala and she held the ends of the plait up to cut a little off.

"Stop!" rang out Balamma's voice.