Lal Hussain, 66, ‘drummer of Ramazan’ plays his drum while knocking on the doors of Bani, a former residential area, in Rawalpindi. PHOTO: AFP
RAWALPINDI:
A centuries-old tradition in the subcontinent of waking up residents for sehri during the holy month of Ramazan is now breathing its last in Rawalpindi, as technological advancements and changes in social habits make the practice increasingly obsolete.
For generations, men walked through Muslim neighborhoods before dawn, first banging empty cans and then drums, calling worshipers to rise to eat their pre-fast meal.
However, with the rise of modern technology and social media, many urban residents no longer sleep until sehri. Instead, they stay up past midnight, participating in worship or browsing online platforms.
Historically, the practice dates back about 500 years, when lamps were lit at high points to mark the time of sehri. As soon as the lights appeared, the residents would understand that it was time to wake up.
In later years, groups of men replaced the lamps with empty cans of ghee and cooking oil tied around their necks with rope, hitting them with small sticks while shouting, “Get up, you who fast, it is time for sehri.” The practice was considered both a virtuous act and a seasonal livelihood.
Subsequently, loudspeakers and sirens became popular means of alerting residents. Sirens still sound in many places, usually an hour before sehri and again at iftar time. Throughout Ramadan, these groups would go on their rounds and return on Eid to collect flour, sugar, tea, rice or cash as eidi from grateful households.
Gradually, tin cans gave way to drums and, until the early 2000s, numerous groups continued the tradition. However, over time their number decreased.
What were once two or three competing groups have now been reduced to a mere handful. Today, some residents oppose early morning drumming, arguing that children sleep, students study, and it disturbs the elderly or sick relatives. In previous decades, families welcomed callers and rewarded them generously on Eid.
In Punjab, waking up residents for sehri remained a seasonal occupation for 70 to 80 years. Now, even the few who continue often receive little or no eidi.
Fareeduddin, who called Sehri and who recently completed his Ramadan rounds in Rawalpindi, said the tradition runs in the family. “My grandfather and my father performed this duty every Ramadan. There are three brothers; two have left the job and now my own son no longer continues it. I keep the mission of my ancestors alive, although it is becoming more difficult. It is a great virtue. Until the year 2000 we were appreciated. Now people fight with us. On several occasions, the drum was snatched from me and only returned to me after many pleas and warnings not to enter again in certain streets.”
Where Rawalpindi once had 15 to 20 such groups, now only three remain, and they may even disappear in the coming years. Residents argue that with scientific progress and mobile phone alarms, traditional calls are no longer necessary.
The practice of signaling sehri and iftar by firing cannons is also ancient in the Arab world. In Egypt, the tradition of firing a cannon to mark the time of sehri supposedly began in 1439 and gradually spread throughout the Arab region and the subcontinent. Over the centuries, various methods have evolved, each reflecting the customs of its time.
What was once a treasured community ritual and source of seasonal income is now on the brink of extinction, overtaken by modern life and changing social rhythms.
