" Beard to Bindi "

When Nikhil joined engineering college at the age of 18, he had his hair in an undercut style, he had a neat moustache and a light beard. He was studying in another city and used to return to his home during vacations. He started growing his hair and didn’t cut it for 2 years. His family had no problem with him growing his hair long. By the end of two years, he had grown his hair a little past his shoulders, reaching just above his upper back. He usually tied his long hair into a tight bun, secured neatly with a hairband. Every couple of weeks, he’d visit the salon for a proper oil massage and shampoo. His friends often played with his hair. Tugging at his bun, undoing his ponytail, or used to prank him by tossing bits of food or random junk into his hair. But Nikhil never really minded, he laughed along, enjoying the attention and the harmless fun.

When summer vacations rolled around, Nikhil boarded the train back home. His father wasn’t in town because he had to attend a wedding and would be away for five days. So, his mother and his 14-year-old sister were there to welcome him.

He reached his town in the morning and slept for the rest of the day. Both his mother and sister were surprised to see how great the quality of his hair was, especially since he was usually lazy about it. However, he took his hair seriously. His mother and sister also had great quality hair, but his sister had cut hers short because she found it hard and annoying to manage as it grew.

While his mother was oiling his hair, she teased him in a light-hearted way, calling him ‘badi beti’ and laughing. Then, she began admiring the length and appreciating how well he had grown his hair—it was as long as his sister’s. Without him realizing, she parted it in the middle and braided it neatly.

He didn’t really mind the braid and just had his dinner. Since his beard was a bit uneven, he went to the barber shop at night to get it cleaned up. But the barber accidentally moved the trimmer the wrong way and messed it up, so he ended up getting a clean shave. Before leaving, he asked the barber to tie his hair into a tight bun because he had to play cricket on the turf with his friends—and he didn’t want to show up with a braid and give them a reason to tease him.

When he arrived at the turf and joined his friends, they immediately noticed his clean-shaven face and the bun tied tightly at the back. They started teasing him, calling him "Smriti Mandhana" and making jokes about how he looked more like a girl than a cricket player. Despite their laughter, he ignored the comments and focused on playing the game.

When he reached home, he called out for some water while his mother and sister were in the room, busy arranging clothes.

(Nikhil walks into the house, clearly tired, and calls out from the hallway)
Nikhil: “Pani do zara…”

(His mother, busy arranging clothes in the room, hears him and calls out playfully)
Mother: “Aa gayi meri badi beti!”

His sister walks out with a glass of water. She takes one look at him—his clean-shaven face and neatly tied bun—and bursts out laughing.

Sister: “He really wants to become your badi beti, Maa!”
(Calling louder) “Maa, come look at your son!”

Nikhil sits down on the sofa quietly, knowing he probably looks a bit too soft with the bun and no beard.

His mother steps out, takes one look at him, and chuckles.

Mother: “What did you do to your beard?”

Sister: “And that bun… who tied it so nicely? Wait, did you go to the salon or something?”

Nikhil (dryly): “The barber messed up my beard with the trimmer, so I just told him to clean shave it. Then I asked him to tie the bun too—I had to play cricket and didn’t want to show up in a braid.”

Mother (smiling): “You actually look neat, just… very different.”

Sister: “Yeah, if people see you from behind, they might think you’re some college girl.”

Mother (laughing): “Bas ab uniform pehen lo aur school chali jao!”

Nikhil: “You both done? Good. I’m going to sleep.”

He walks off to his room and lies down, not caring much about the teasing, just glad to be home.

For the next two days, he felt completely bored. The only time he enjoyed was playing cricket with his friends at the turf at night. The rest of the day, he just scrolled endlessly on his phone, feeling restless and bored.