Hair donations popular among UAE school students

Dubai - While donating, 12 inches measured tip to tip is the minimum length must be in a ponytail or braid before it is cut.

Apart from having to wash, clean, and maintain it regularly, young boys who willfully grow their locks also have to face ridicule from relatives back home. However, for six-year-old Rohan R and his brother Rishi (9), the humble experience of donating hair to chemotherapy patients two weeks ago made the hardships of having long hair totally worth it.
Both students of Amlet School in Al Quoz Dubai, the boys began growing their hair in February last year. "At first, my school said only girls could donate hair for the October month cancer awareness campaign. I thought that was unfair and wanted to grow my hair as well," Rohan told Khaleej Times after his haircut.
Brothers Rohan and Rishi are one among the several small children who donated over eight inches of their hair to make wigs for cancer patients, a trend that is becoming increasingly popular among schools and school children. Children as young as six-years-old are donating their hair towards the cause. "Students need to take special permissions from their schools to grow their hair," said their mother Reshmi Balakrishnan.
Rishi added: "At first, I got teased by friends, especially when I went for vacations to India. They mistook me and my brother for girls. However, the school was supportive and explained to all students what we were doing."
According to parents, children learn the value of empathy and sharing and schools are also very supportive towards the cause. Apart from organising hair donation drives, schools are becoming increasingly lenient with students who wish to grow their hair for donation. 'Hair for Hope - India', an organisation launched by cancer activist Premi Mathew, is a social initiative that inspires thousands of donations from across the globe. Premi also suspects Rohan may be one of the youngest boys in the world to donate nine inches of hair towards the cause.
According to Mathew, a total of eight schools in Dubai and Sharjah have organised donation drives. "The initiative itself has grown purely through word-of-mouth and recommendations," she said. "It is amazing to see young boys and girls growing their hair and growing bald towards this noble initiative. Especially in the case of boys, they have to face a lot of social ridicule when they have long hair," she added.
Viju Thakkar, a housewife and ten-year-old Snehal Thakkar's mother said: "Snehal was nine-years-old when she donated 12 to 13 inches of her hair. We saw posts of people donating their hair to cancer patients, and it was really inspiring for Snehal."
Viju added: "A friend who lost her son to thalassemia would undergo chemotherapy before his passing. At this time, he would wear a cap over his hear, and when I explained this is the reason Snehal was very inspired to donate her hair."
Another donor Kiara Parekh (6) also donated her long locks towards the cause.

Hair donations not just a haircut