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| Sunday, 4 December 2005 |
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Magazine |  |
| News Business Features Editorial
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"Lord Nelson", a saloon reminiscent of colonial grandeur : Part of a colonial legacy by Ranga Chandrarathne
Perhaps, the stranger if he/she happened to be a foreigner, would wonder what this historical person who fought many a battle for Britain, was doing with the name board and more amazing, the tiny quarter that it led into. But a closer look at it would make one realize that "Lord Nelson" is not a museum of artifacts belonging to Lord Nelson, but a saloon by the name of that great warrior. It does not have state-of the art material nor does it have the present call of hairdressing salons, now barber saloons are no more known as saloons , hey!they are salons! so Lord Nelson has no sophistication of the present day salons but serves the purpose though. This saloon had been serving generations of clients right from the Colonial era. And would you believe it still stands right at the same spot. Not to be outdone by all the plush hair cutting saloons in and around the city of Colombo.
At the beginning the major clients of the saloon were the middle class and upper middle class Britishers who came down to Sri Lanka, then known as Ceylon, for trade and to work in the upcountry plantation sector. But now it caters to a different clientele. Joshep Fernando, the present owner of the saloon said, " My father started the saloon in 1930. Now my two brothers and I run the saloon. Those days when my father was in charge of the saloon, upper middle class Britishers and Government officers visited the saloon. There was a hotel by the name of "Lord Nelson, " round the corner which would have prompted my father to put this name for the saloon. Those days the saloon was not only a place for getting a hair -cut but also a place where you could get a tattoo done. So mind you tatoos were in fashion a long time ago too. And tattoo making was part of the saloon for so many years and up to now tattoos were done in the harbour premises. Prince Charles' Father when he visited Sri Lanka got a tattoo done at this saloon. However, after the closure of the road, the numbers have dwindled. He said that the present clientele makes up of office workers and MPs. The late Dr. N. M. Perera, Sir John Kotelawala and A. H. M. Azwer were some of the distinguished persons who visited the saloon. The saloon is open from 9.00 am and close at 7.00 pm. Titus Fernando, an employee said, " I have been working here for over 32 years and I receive a good salary. This is like a home to me. Since the closure of the road, our clientele has dropped but old clients to still make it a point to come here to get a hair-cut." The ownership of the saloon has been handed down from generation to generation. Three brothers run the saloon which still maintain an aura of colonial past. |
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| Politics | Produced by Lake House |
A
stranger walking along old Chatham Street, a street as old and colonial as
the old buildings by the sides of it built along the lines of Colonial
architecture, towards the harbour of Colombo, might encounter a tiny,
insignificant board on the side of the road with the name "Lord Nelson"
painted on it. 
The
second generation that owned and managed the saloon reminisce fondly of
the bright days during the Colonial era when Chatham Street was one of the
busiest streets in the city of Colombo which served thousands of peoples
who tread along the street to and from the harbour. 
