TIRUNELVELI: If there’s a thin line separating discipline from moral policing, it’s probably this.
A school headmaster in Tirunelveli has issued a ‘notice’ to all salons, requesting them not to offer trendy or stylish haircuts to school students - such as box cuts, one-side cuts, and spikes to name a few.
While it’s normal for schools and colleges to impose rules on students, with regard to dress code, hygiene, and hairstyles, it’s for the first time that hairstylists are being told to enforce such rules. The man who took the extra effort to police haircuts is Srinivasan, the headmaster of a Government Higher Secondary School here. On Monday, he distributed the notice to all salons and barbershops between Chinthamani and Courtallam.
It says, “Disciplining students is not just the job of teachers, but also of the society. Hairstylists play a major role in transforming looks and habits of students. We request hairstylists to give students haircuts which are suitable to the environment and not of their (students’) choice.”
Speaking to Express about his initiative, which dissuades students from even choosing how to wear their own hair, Srinivasan justified it was for their welfare. “We conducted a meeting and also discussed the issue with parents,” he said. “This will help in personality development of students.”
Some parents concurred with the view that hairstyles have a lot to do with character. “Nowadays children get haircuts without the approval of parents. At a young age, they want to look all mature. It does not suit them. Schools and parents are responsible for the changes in hairstyles, as this can have an impact on students’ behaviour,” said the parent of a 16-year-old on condition of anonymity.
S Prabhu, a hairdresser from Courtallam said he will try to abide by the diktat.
“Yes, some students do bring pictures of celebrities and request haircuts in similar fashion. We turn down some requests, but many others insist they want the same style. In the coming days, we will try and reduce it,” said Prabhu.
Chief Education Officer of Tirunelveli, R Boopathy, has appreciated the notice. “The society has a commitment towards children, along with parents and teachers. During adolescence, schools impart value education to students to help them keep diversion at bay. As many students assume themselves to be movie heroes, they choose trendy hairstyles, which affect their behaviour and life. The department is also conducting a case study to monitor students of government schools who deviate and offer them counselling,” he said.
Ironically, government authorities monitoring hairstyles of citizens and banning certain haircuts is currently only prevalent in North Korea, which has a dictatorial regime.
‘Discussed with parents’
“We conducted a meeting and also discussed the issue with parents,” HM Srinivasan said. “This will help in personality development of students.”