The popular Chequera (Mario Sardiñas) once again hit the nail on the head —and this time also on the scalp— with a reel on Facebook that has already amassed tens of thousands of views and thousands of likes, in which the most mischievous character from Vivir del Cuento reacts with his usual blend of drama and laughter to the price of 800 Cuban pesos for a simple haircut.
The video begins with Chequera pretending to faint at the news. "Pipo, that was... a shocking piece of news. How can you tell me that a haircut costs 800 pesos? Do you know that after this haircut, my pockets are going to be empty?" the character exclaims, showcasing that unique logic only he possesses.
But Chequera doesn't dwell on lamenting. True to his resourceful Cuban nature, he quickly moves on to negotiation. First, he gauges whether the price includes anything extra: “The 800 pesos include 'cockroaches' and everything, right?... Check to see if there's any louse with a gold cap, a gold chain.” The answer, evidently, is no.
Faced with the refusal, the character unveils his catalog of alternative styles with a disarming seriousness: he requests the "mule," "paneled" on the sides, and at the back, he wants his recurring word "güiro" drawn in, a cut that, according to him, "is in fashion right now." The improvised barber doesn't know whether to laugh or cry. Nor does the onlooker.
What hurts the most —with humor, of course— is the comparison over time. "Before, I could live the whole year on 800 pesos, even getting a haircut twice a day, and I would still have money left over," recalls the character. The worst, however, was yet to come: "Damn, the power's out," announces the barber. "No way!" exclaims Chequera, encapsulating in one syllable the catastrophe that Cuba is experiencing. And he's not exaggerating too much: inflation has turned basic services into unreachable luxuries for millions of Cubans, and enjoying regular electricity feels like a distant dream.
The reality depicted in the video is as harsh as the joke. A barbershop in Playa municipality, Havana, was already charging 1,600 pesos for a haircut in January 2025, an amount that exceeds the monthly pension of a retiree. The 800 pesos that scandalize Chequera surprisingly turn out to be a "moderate" price within the current market.
Faced with the impossibility of continuing in a proper manner, Chequera opts for the most Cuban solution possible: "Well, look, right now you take a pair of scissors, a nail clipper, and write here really big: 'Guiteras.' And here: 'Felton.' And on the back: 'Renté.'" He concludes with a request that sums up his frustration: "You do it just like that, even if it bleeds me dry [...] And something broken, right here"... The haircut in the style of a "Cuban thermoelectric plant" was born.
The metaphor, of course, is no coincidence. Cuban thermoelectric plants have been operating at half capacity for years, with constant breakdowns and generation deficits ranging from 1,600 to over 2,100 MW recorded since 2025. In December of that year, seven thermoelectric units were simultaneously out of service, and the crisis continues to worsen in 2026 with no signs of recovery. A cut made with scissors and nail clippers, broken and "bleeding," is just as functional as those outdated facilities.
It is not the first time that Chequera turns blackouts and the Cuban crisis into comedic material. The character played by Mario Sardiñas—born in 1975 in Camagüey—has been an honest and entertaining mirror of the everyday struggles on the island for years. His humor works because he does not invent anything: he simply gives a face, voice, and laugh to what millions of Cubans experience every day.
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