Nearly 11 years after being shot dead by police, India’s most notorious but fiercely bewhiskered bandit has been resurrected by an international cosmetics manufacturer – on the lid of its moustache wax jar.
Last year, Lush Cosmetics launched Veerappan moustache wax, named after the outlaw responsible for murdering about 120 people and poaching more than 200 elephants for their ivory, in the contiguous southern Indian states of Tamil Nadu and Karnataka.
Shot dead in an ambush in October 2004, Veerappan kidnapped rich and famous people for ransom and cut down hundreds of hectares of sandalwood forest to smuggle out the agreeably scented and valuable wood that is gradually becoming extinct.
Now, from atop Lush’s moustache wax jar, the brigand urges customers to “add a daring twist” to their facial hair for just $15.95 (€14.34).
In its online advert, Lush promises to make “whiskery kisses all the more memorable”.
The company could not have chosen a better moustache than Veerappan’s to promote its male styling product, which also claims to “work wonders to soften [hair] split ends too”.
Concealed his lips
Veerappan’s moustache almost entirely concealed his lips, its thick hairy oversized “pillars” dwarfing his face and hanging carelessly like well-trimmed bushes off the edge of his chin.
A journalist who spent time with Veerappan in the 1990s said he lavished care on his moustache every day, treating it with special oils and herbs, before combing and rolling it round his fingers to give it a stylish droop.
Moustaches are an integral part of Indian tradition and folklore, closely associated with respect, honour and above all machismo.
In northern Punjab province, home to the bearded Sikhs, there is a popular axiom that is relevant even today: Muchh nahi, kuch nahi (Not having a moustache is akin to having nothing).
The most impressive moustaches in Punjab are those than can balance a small lemon on their upturned ends.
Moustaches in Punjab and in neighbouring Rajasthan state are an enduring symbol of maleness, emblems of pride and social standing.
Loss of face is likened to cutting off the moustache, widely considered an unpardonable insult that can, and often does, lead to prolonged feuds.
Some years ago policemen in central India's Madhya Pradesh state were paid a monthly allowance of 42 cents to grow moustaches, as senior officers believed they bestowed gravitas and authority upon their force.
The officer who introduced this allowance said that whiskered lawmen generated a masterful aura, which in turn spawned respect for lawmen.
He hit upon the cash-for-moustaches idea following a seminar attended by district policemen and local residents.
Over time moustachioed policemen came to enjoy an unstated higher status, but senior officials kept an eye on the shape and size of their whiskers, mindful that they did not look too intimidating.
Only “proper” moustaches were encouraged – ones that twirled along the upper lip.
Bushy handlebar models were permitted, but only if they did not look overly menacing or challenging.
Stroking their whiskers
Policemen were discouraged from duplicating moustaches sported by Bollywood villains, who were often portrayed in films stroking their whiskers malevolently while torturing victims or eyeing women.
Moustaches have even resulted in legal battles in India.
One such case involved Victor Joynath De, an Indian Airlines flight attendant grounded some years ago for refusing to shave off his handlebar moustache.
The airline said De’s moustache was a health risk, especially as he handled food.
“My moustache is me,” the attendant insisted at the time.
Supported by his flight attendant wife, he took the matter to the Calcutta high court in eastern India, which ruled in his favour after months of amusing and learned arguments on facial hair.
“I never dreamed of trimming it,” De said, after his moustache had been legally safeguarded.
He said it had taken him 25 years to grow and attracted nothing but admiration, especially from female passengers inside the aircraft.
Meanwhile, Lush’s Veerappan moustache wax has triggered an online protest petition, which demands that the global cosmetics company rename its product and stop glorifying Veerappan’s banditry.
