I’m back. Not only I’m back, I’m back with a tattoo, the first ever for me.
This was one of my all time fantasies and I guess most of the Sri Lankan men in my generation secretly wants to have a tattoo. I know the generation after mine has no prejudices or second thoughts about having some needle piercing through their skin and having some outrageous picture printed on the them for the rest of their lives. But for me, we’ve been brought up in an environment and an era, both in home and school, where having a tattoo is considered taboo and often fed with the notion only the thugs and low lives have tattoos. But, I have passed that age where I have to listen to my teachers and parents. In fact, I have passed the age of being crazy or careless. Yet, somewhere deep inside I always had this thought of having a tattoo. But that wasn’t enough to push me off the edge and actually go do it. But with some very personal recent emotional shake up I couldn’t stop my self from doing it. I couldn’t stop my self from being under the needle. I wasn’t fun though. The pain was excruciating and I had thought of stopping it before it was finished. Somehow I survived and the sense of achievement at the end was heavenly. I guess that sense of achievement is the reason why people keep getting tattooed with bigger and extraordinary designs all over their bodies and they can’t stop it. It is that addictive and I may have my second tattoo sooner than later.
PS. The place I had the tattoo is called Jasmi. It’s a cool and a fun place with a competent young tattoo artist (I regretfully forgotten his name). The shop is located in the ground floor or Reality Plaza, Ja-Ela. Call Mahesh on 077 8947410 or 077 5522444 for appointments if you are crazy as me.
Thoughtful Kani 