It was during the lockdown that Shivaay Singh Oberoi discovered just how much he relied on professional grooming. With salons closed and his usual barber out of reach, he was left to the mercy of Anika, who had been begging him for weeks to let her try cutting his hair.
"Shivaay, please," Anika pleaded one evening, holding up a pair of scissors as if she were offering him the golden ticket to eternal youth. "I can do this. I've watched tutorials! It's just hair!"
Shivaay had tried to avoid the inevitable for as long as he could. But the longer he resisted, the more Anika's excitement grew. Finally, after several days of her pestering him—coupled with her assurances that it would be "fine"—Shivaay caved.
"Fine, fine," he grumbled, sitting down reluctantly on the couch. "But if this goes wrong, you're the one who's going to live with my fury."
Anika gave him a confident, almost mischievous grin. "Don't worry, Shivaay. You're going to look amazing!"
Anika started with the scissors, gingerly snipping at the edges of his hair. Shivaay, trying to be the supportive husband, closed his eyes, pretending to relax, but inside, his mind was screaming, What am I doing?
The first snip was clean, but after a few more, Anika's confidence began to waver. She had watched a lot of tutorials, but cutting hair in real life was not the same as trimming a wig.
"Anika...are you sure you know what you're doing?" Shivaay asked nervously, feeling the weight of each snip as if the scissors were slowly cutting away his dignity.
Anika, however, was determined. "I'm doing great! Trust me, you'll be happy with the result!"
But soon, Shivaay could feel the unevenness. One side of his hair was noticeably shorter than the other. And the top? Let's just say it looked like Anika had decided to give him a new "spiky mohawk" look. The horror was sinking in, but Anika was oblivious to his growing panic.
When Anika finally finished, she spun Shivaay around to face the mirror. "Tada! Look at your new look!"
Shivaay's jaw dropped. His hair was now an unkempt, uneven mess. It was as though someone had taken a lawnmower to his head. The left side was trimmed like it had been through a hedge trimmer, and the right side looked like it had been cut by someone with no sense of symmetry whatsoever.
He stood there for a moment, in shock, then slowly turned to Anika.
"What... what is this?" His voice had a dramatic undertone, as if he were confronting the betrayal of a lifetime.
Anika beamed, completely unaware of the disaster she had just created. "You look... different! But in a good way, right? I mean, it's a fresh look, don't you think?"
Shivaay was speechless. He raised a hand to his head, touched the uneven strands, and then his expression turned to one of complete and utter despair. "This... this is... I look like I belong in a circus!"
Anika, still hopeful, tried to reason with him. "No, no! It's just a little different. You're still handsome, Shivaay! It's... it's... edgy!"
Shivaay turned away dramatically, plopping himself onto the couch. He crossed his arms, sulking as if the world had ended. "Edgy? This is not edgy. This is a crime against my hair. A catastrophe."
Anika, realizing that Shivaay was really upset now, tried to apologize. "Okay, maybe it's not perfect, but you'll get used to it. It's just hair, Shivaay."
Shivaay shot her a glare. "It's not just hair, Anika! This is my image! My brand! How am I supposed to face the world looking like this? I'll be a laughingstock! I'll never be taken seriously again."
The rest of the evening was filled with Shivaay dramatically sulking. He refused to look in any mirrors, avoiding anyone who might see his dishevelled hair. Every time someone mentioned how he looked, he would give them a glare that could freeze water.
Rudra, who had been waiting for a chance to tease his older brother, walked into the room, his face lighting up at the sight of Shivaay's new "style."
"Bhaiya, what's going on? Trying a new wild look? You know, I always thought you needed a little more flair!" Rudra said, his grin widening with each word.
Shivaay shot him a glare, his dramatic mood escalating. "Rudra, I swear if you so much as breathe in the direction of my hair, I will disown you."
But Rudra was relentless. "I'm just saying, bhaiya, it has character. You know, it's... bold. Not everyone can pull it off."
Shivaay, still sulking, turned away. "I look ridiculous. I'm a man of prestige, not... whatever this is!"
Anika tried to intervene, but it was no use. Shivaay wasn't listening. He was having a full-blown hair crisis. He remained grumpy, even as Rudra took out his phone and snapped a picture of the "new look," intending to use it for future blackmail material.
The next morning, Shivaay woke up, took one look at himself in the mirror, and sighed. His hair was even worse than he had remembered. He immediately stormed into the living room, his eyes narrowed in fury.
"Anika!" he called out.
Anika appeared, looking guilty but hopeful. "Shivaay, I know it doesn't look great right now, but it'll grow back. Maybe we can go to a real salon after the lockdown, and they can fix it."
Shivaay glared at her. "I can't walk into a salon like this, Anika! I look like a... like a mad scientist who had a run-in with a blender!"
Anika bit her lip to keep from laughing, but she was clearly having trouble keeping a straight face. "I'm sorry, Shivaay. I really thought it would turn out better."
Shivaay sulked even more. "Well, now you've ruined me for the entire world to see. Do you know how hard it is to look like this and still maintain a sense of dignity?"
After a long pause, Anika couldn't hold back any longer and burst into laughter. "Shivaay, you look hilarious! You're still handsome—in an unconventional way."
Shivaay raised an eyebrow. "Unconventional? Anika, you are literally the only person on the planet who would say that."
She giggled. "Well, what can I say? I love you in every wild form."
Shivaay sighed dramatically. "I need therapy. And a haircut. But mostly therapy."
And so, Shivaay's hair crisis was born, and for days to come, it remained a topic of great family amusement. Anika might have ruined his image for a short while, but the truth was, no matter what he looked like, she was the only one who could make him feel better. Even if it was at the cost of a very, very dramatic sulk.
