It is that time of the year when men proudly sport their beards, thanks to the #NoShaveNovember hashtag on social media. The annual social media trend finds its roots in Movember, which was created to raise awareness about prostrate, testicular cancer and men’s mental health and suicide prevention. While the origins of the movement, which started roughly over 20 years ago in Australia, lies in growing moustaches, over the years it has evolved into include more facial hair.  

Like in many other cities around the world, the men in Mumbai have been growing their beards this November and the number is visibly increasing by the year. However, not everyone needs the ruse of a hashtag to grow a beard. Mid-day.com reached out to a few perennial beard owners in the city who haven’t shaved since puberty. While all of them are aware of Movember, they warn against blind adherence to the social media trend and stress the need to be more aware of the reason behind the movement.