Brush aside

Tony el Mendelek is a hairdresser, one of the best hairdressers in the country. But ask him if his work can change society and he’ll laugh in your face. Which is rather refreshing.

Do you feel you make a change to the country?

A change? [Laughs] Hardly. I mean I work a lot, I try my best at what I do. I keep myself busy and trained, keep up with the latest fashion. I mean, I try. I try to help people feel better about themselves by helping them with their hair. If you’re telling me I’m one of the best hairdressers, I’ll have to take your word for it.

It can be argued that fashion and hairdressing is not really part of local culture but do you feel that your work contributes to people’s lives?

Sure I do. When a lady gets a nice haircut her face just lights up. With the right cut and color I feel they become happier. If you wake up in the morning and everything’s in the laundry, you put on a shirt you don’t like and you just don’t feel comfortable throughout the whole day. It might be trivial in nature but the effect that these little things have is far reaching. I try to figure out the woman’s style and give it to her; I try to help her feel better in her own skin.

So do you think you’re as much a therapist as you are a hairdresser?

I think women get depressed when their hair is messy. The working woman pulls her hair back in the morning and is fine. This is because pulling your hair back makes it neat, and that’s great. They do this to feel better. But when you don’t want to pull your hair back you get a haircut, and it feels good to get compliments throughout the day, and you will with a good haircut. If you’ve had a good night’s sleep, have picked out the proper clothing and look your best, you’ll have a good energy all day.

Some feel that hairdressing is trivial and people ought to focus on the more important matters…

Fine, we’ve had three decades of war and people are suffering. I feel like a lot of these people brought this attitude onto themselves by focusing on politics and unemployment. You want to focus on politics, that’s great, but I want to live my life properly. I think you should live your life normally, as though you were in a peaceful thriving country. If you want to get pampered, then making yourself feel guilty about it certainly won’t help anyone.

But certainly unemployment needs more than a positive attitude?

Does it? I live in Mtayleb and I pass a man everyday, a non-Lebanese, standing on the corner selling newspapers. I wait in line to buy them because he’s picked a very convenient spot. He even sells Time Out Beirut, no kiosk, nothing; just an umbrella and nylon bags. If he sells a hundred publications a day he’ll make a very decent living. You tell me what he has that we don’t? So really, I think people should give us a break here. If a woman feels better with a good hairstyle, let’s just leave her alone and let her have this simple pleasure. I tell you, this is what Beirut is. We’re a beacon of life and fashion.

So what’s your favorite place in Lebanon?

It might be a cliché but I like the mountains. I like the sound of birds, even chickens. I have a piece of land in Qornet Chehwan and sometimes I just go there for a while and stand and stare. It drains my stress and renews my attachment to Lebanon. It’s like medicine; I recommend it more than sports, more than yoga. Just find a rock and sit on it. Beirut is traffic, money, alcohol and life. Beirut is a party and a business. It’s too much for me sometimes but it’ll always be the centre of Lebanese life.