Whenever the lockdown ends, the longest queues would be outside barber's shops and saloons. And, of course, the roadside make-shift barbers' shop.
But, the barbers' community, is literally living on a razor's edge.
Across the country, as part of the COVID-19 India lockdown, the barbers' shops are shut.
The apex body of the barbers in Maharashtra feels that their condition is among the worst in India. "Our condition is going from bad to worse," says Dattatreya Anarase, the President of Maharashtra Nabhik Mahamandal.
According to him, Maharashtra has around five lakh barbers' shop. "On an average four to five persons work in barber's shop and saloons. In Maharashtra, we have around 15 to 20 lakh barbers," he said, adding that while small shops on the hinterland may earn Rs 300 to Rs 500 per day, in small shops with four to five persons in cities, it could be in the range of Rs 1,000 to Rs 1,200.
"The formula is simple. The shop owner gets 50 percent and the workers 50 percent," he said, adding that in Maharashtra half of the workforce are migrant workers. "We have to give rent, electricity bills among other things," he said.
"This is largely an unorganized sector and there is no help whatsoever from the government," said Anarase, who is based in Mumbai.
The Maharashtra Nabhik Mahamandal has petitioned Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman and Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray for help.
"The situation in the rural area is worse than the cities...we are starving," he said, adding that the Centre and Maharashtra government must come out with some kind of a package to help us.
Anarase is also in touch with the association of other states and working on a joint strategy and petition. He, however, said some of the states are offering help to the community through schemes that are running.
"Several migrant workers have left but those who are here, we have also been providing them food,” Anarase added.
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