How these two Singaporeans kept dreadlocks for 20 years

The average person may shy away from ‘disreputable’ dreadlocks, associating it with hippies, marijuana and hobos. But for these two Singaporeans, who’ve been cultivating their thatch for two decades, there’s nothing dreadful about 'dreads’.

Record and book store owner Ridhwan V. Ghany, 40, has kept his since 1994, while audio, visual and lighting business owner Henry Saravanan, 38, has been keeping his since 1997. Today, the length of their hair is almost the same as their height. Ridhwan is about 170cm and Henry is 185cm tall.

   
Ridhwan, who owns Straits Records, feels dreadlocks are the perfect solution for a curly-haired person who wants long hair. Curly hair is “unpredictable”, he says. When the wind blows, it’s difficult to keep hair in place - which is not a problem with dreadlocks.  
 
Ridhwan also loves dreadlocks due to its link to “reggae and alternative culture”, which he's a fan of.

Henry’s decision, though, had nothing to do with that. He simply wanted to keep his hair long while looking “unique and different” at the same time. He opted for cornrows before, but it was unsustainable.
 
“I wanted cornrows but it’s not easy. You can’t keep it for too long,” he says.
 
Reactions to their dreadlocks
 
Ridhwan and Henry have witnessed varied reactions to their unconventional hairstyle, from open gawking to snide remarks.

 
“When I walk, heads turn,” says Henry, the owner of Synergy AVL Pte Ltd, whose company has provided services to the Parliament House and the Singapore Civil Defence, among others. 

Henry says his hair even caught the attention of Law and Education Ministries’ Senior Minister of State, Indranee Rajah, once.
 
“I was at a summit with her and that was when she came to know about me. There was a speech she did where she said she met me…” he says.
 
Henry adds that some of the people at the event were “surprised to see people with (his) look (doing) business”.
 
Ridhwan also receives stares from the public and enjoys conversations with curious strangers about his hair, but has also come across bitter reactions.
 
“Once, I was taking the escalator up in Causeway Point and this mum and her son were behind me. They probably thought I didn’t understand what they were saying, but the mother said to her son in Malay, ‘Boy, don’t be like this when you’ve grown up’,” he says.
 
He adds, “Society is like that. They don’t really care to get know the person before they judge.”

 
Maintaining natural dreadlocks
 
Contrary to popular belief, it's very easy to maintain dreadlocks – as long as you don’t use extensions.
 
“People who do extensions can’t keep hair for long. They can’t get used to it (because) it’s not their real hair. It starts to itch, the synthetic (hair) comes out and the maintenance is very high.”
 
Both Ridhwan and Henry's dreadlocks are natural from the roots. 

 And while some of us may wash our hair every day, especially with the Singapore heat and humidity, Ridhwan and Henry wash theirs once a week.
 
Ridhwan uses organic shampoo that produces little foam “so there’s less residue to rinse off”, while Henry uses normal shampoo. Ridhwan also applies olive oil to his hair. They don’t use dry shampoo or special products for their dreadlocks.

 
Singaporeans going to Thailand for dreadlock extensions
 
Many Singaporeans go to Thailand to get dreadlock extensions because it’s cheaper there. They can get them done for about S$80, says Noreen Kwek, a senior hairstylist at local salon Hairy Culture.
 
The salon is located at Far East Plaza and is known for its expertise in creating radical hairstyles such as dreadlocks. Here, it costs at least $250 for a full head of dreadlocks.
 
There are many disadvantages to getting dreadlocks in Thailand, according to Kwek.
 
“When they come back, we can see that they did it (dreadlocks) there. They (hairstylists in Thailand) don’t section the hair properly and would sometimes attach to much natural hair to a synthetic dreadlock,” she says. 
 
It is usually difficult for stylists here to do touch-ups, and there are times when she is forced to reject a customer, she adds.
 
Kwek advises washing hair every day and keeping the scalp clean and dry to maintain hair with synthetic dreadlocks. It’s also good to use hair tonic and scalp shampoo.
 
While there are very few Singaporeans with dreadlocks, Kwek says some are influenced by movie characters such as Jack Sparrow from Pirates of the Carribean. After the movie hit theatres in 2003, she saw a small surge in customers coming for dreadlocks.