Dubai brothers give an 18-month head of hair to cancer charity
Two Dubai schoolboys went to great lengths for a good cause – shaving their heads in support of people battling cancer.
Rishi Balakrishnan, 9, and his brother Rohan, 6, agreed to lop off their long locks in solidarity with a school pal, who was inspired to cut off her hair because her mother was undergoing a course of chemotherapy at the time.
The siblings, who attend Amled School Dubai, spent 18 months growing their hair before having it shaved off.
There will be more than just a fringe benefit to their efforts, because the hair has been donated to Hair for Hope India, a charity that provides wigs for people fighting cancer.
The boys’ mother, Rashmi, said it was her eldest son who had come up with the idea.
“The school was having a donation for pupils to donate their hair, after Maria Abraham, a six-year-old pupil, had shaved off her hair to support her mother who was going through chemotherapy at the time,” Ms Balakrishnan said.
“Rishi asked me why he couldn’t take part as well and if it was only for girls. We explained to him that your hair had to be 30 centimetres long, which was why boys were not able to take part.”
Her son decided he would not be deterred from taking part in the appeal and spent the next 18 months growing his hair to the desired length.
“He was so worried when he heard about people suffering from cancer, especially young babies, so he wanted to take part,” she said.
“His younger brother Rohan said he wanted to be part of it as well. So we went to the school and got permission for them to grow their hair.”
Premi Mathew, founder of Hair for Hope India, said she could not have been prouder of the example set by the brothers.
“Rohan and Rishi grew their hair for a year and a half despite searing summer heat and having to face ridicule on occasions,” she said.
“They did it all with one goal in mind and that was to put smiles on the faces of chemotherapy patients.”
Rishi spoke about the challenges the boys faced to compete their 18-month-long task.
“Our hair was so long that there were times when people mistook us for girls,” he said.
“When we were in shops looking for clothes people would show us to the girls’ section instead of the one for boys.”
The brothers were the only two boys to take part in the schools’ donation appeal, said Shiny Davison, the vice-principal. “We had 50 pupils and parents taking part in the hair donation, they were the only two boys,” she said.
“It all began when one of our Grade 1A pupils, Maria Abraham, wanted to shave off her hair because she thought her mother felt lonely and people kept staring at her.
“Their hair will one day adorn the head of someone undergoing treatment for cancer,” Ms Mathew said.
“Wigs help to give chemotherapy patients some confidence to face society with dignity. Many patients end up feeling depressed and unable to face society.”