Hirsute pursuit

Arjun Kapoor is the brand ambassador of a leading brand of grooming solutions and in its ads, represents the perfectly groomed macho young man who is a hit with the ladies

As the craze for the perfectly groomed beard rises among men the world over, the market is flooded with a host of products celebrating grooming machismo What’s in a beard A signifier of indubitable masculinity, some would say. Some others — a newer, more self-indulgent lot, perhaps — would say, beard shampoo. And conditioner. Maybe a leave-in serum too. All of these being, of course, perfectly masculine additions to that fundamental mark of a man, some of them packaged to be very pointedly macho too. From the GoateeSaver — a contraption a man holds in his mouth while shaving to preserve that perfect goatee — and the EdgeUp neckline shaving template to the BeardBro and the Beard Symmetry 2.0, men’s beard grooming products are at an all time high across the globe, along with a simultaneous assertion of how ‘manly’ they are. The Beard Symmetry 2.0, for instance, comes with a beard comb shaped like brass knuckles.

“Well, of course it is. Men are, after all, the ‘pragmatic’ half of the world, perfectly convinced that vanity is a female copyright. Anything approaching it would at least have to be cloaked in an uber-masculine exterior to be acceptable among their tribe,” points out stand-up comedian Saikat Bose, tongue firmly in cheek, He adds, “See, men are not, nor have they ever been, immune to wanting tools and products to enhance their facial appearance. They just need these tools and products to be marketed in a way that doesn’t completely emasculate them. Imagine the GoateeSaver beard comb being shaped like a Powerpuff girl instead of brass knuckles. Bubbles, let’s say. Which man — even if he were the president of the Bubbles fan club — would have it in him to use it in front of his girlfriend Or, worse still, his male friends ”

Given that men can be as conditioned by gender roles and types as women, the need to hold on to an image of being a ‘man’ can also be a conscious impulse motivated by sub-conscious, internalised notions of manhood. Delhi-based media professional Arun Sharma feels, “Of course there is an idea in my head of what I think being a man is all about. Just like my girlfriend has her own understanding of what being a woman is all about. A large part of both our notions is fed by the way we’ve been brought up and socially conditioned, there’s no denying that. Having said that, personal grooming is a matter of personal, individual and therefore subjective choice too. I wear pink shirts with happiness, watch rom-coms without sulking and am not interested in extreme adventure sports. But I will still find a beard comb shaped like brass knuckles or a meat cleaver appealing.”

My girlfriend might not like the meat cleaver so much, but she’d probably love the brass knuckle comb and use it to groom her eyebrows or something these choices aren’t based on the same sub-conscious notions today as they were, say, 50 years ago. If you ask me about the way these things are being sold, however, I must admit that I don’t understand some of the ads that make such a big deal about being a ‘man’ and therefore using ‘manly’ shampoo. I mean, shampoo is shampoo.”

Stand-up comedian Sorabh Pant points out that grooming (read: vanity) having been looked upon as a ‘feminine’ space for the longest time is partially responsible for this urge to reassert machismo on its turf. “I don’t think grooming or ‘peacocking’, as men sometimes call it, is a ‘feminised’ space that men have entered from the outside. Grooming has always existed in some shape or form in all societies, for men and women alike. Only, ours is now taking it to a PhD level,” he says and adds, “If anything, grooming is to a man a means to attract the feminine folk. Or, other men. I don’t judge.” Ask him what the sudden craze among men for the perfectly groomed beard is all about and he sums it up, “Well, I think in general the big trend across the world is to get laid. It’s always been the human endeavour. Single people all exist to earn money and get laid. Beards are in this season. Next season it’ll be neckties born on the bum or gold teeth shaped like the Taj Mahal or whatever. Right now, beards can make even the least fit man look like a warrior. I’m all for them, therefore. Also, as a man blessed with hair on my face and not on my head, grooming my facial area is the only styling I can do. So, I empathise with all these products. Some of them are deranged though, I must concede. Unless you plan to look like an Arab sheikh, normal razors can do the job!”