Meet the Streets Barber, a recovering drug user who has turned his passion for cutting hair into a full time – and even voluntary – occupation.
Nasir Sobhani is a great guy. The 26 year old has turned his life around since recovering from a cocaine addiction four years ago. Given a chance at cutting hair at the barber shop in which he worked, he has not looked back since.
‘A homeless person doesn’t get the respect and attention needed,’ Sobhani told the Australian Daily Mail, ‘So letting them know that they are worthy of human interaction is actually the main purpose here.’
His Clean Cut Clean Start initiative is a great way to show some compassion and humanity to people who are so often overlooked.
Sobhani’s first client was a heroin addict who used to wash the windows of the barber shop in which he worked.
‘One day I saw him and he told me he was off the drugs for a month – I couldn’t believe it! He wanted to get a haircut – his hair was very long and he had dirty dreadlocks in the back, and overall he just needed a complete makeover.
‘I asked him to let me cut his hair, so we sat down together and we shared our stories about our past.
‘After I was done he loved the way he looked and his mum even came in and was taking photos and was in tears.
‘It was a very monumental moment in my life, and it was at this point that I realised that if I could help encourage this change for a guy and all I’m doing is just what I love doing, then maybe I should keep doing it,’ he said.
Since then, he has begun documenting the people he has met, and their stories.
Follow Nasir on YouTube
He's just started his own series, with each episode focussed on one person.