Cultural tradition has not diminished in modern times

Rawalpindi : Yelling at the top of his voice and beating his drum loudly, the sound of ‘dhol wala’ is not alien for the residents of Rawalpindi, who wake up in Ramazan every night before ‘Sehr’ by the reverberations of his drum.

The tradition of waking people up in the month of Ramazan is probably centuries old, born in the times when there were no facilities like the alarm clock and people had to rely upon the call of the drumbeaters, who used to adopt different tactics to make the beating sound as loud as possible to ensure that people get out of their cosy beds.

Today, due to technological advancements, it is no more difficult for a person to get up at a particular time, yet the job of waking up people still prevails with the same zeal and is considered pious.

A man while beating a drum visits the congested streets of the inner city in the wee hours, usually around 2am. Most of the times, he calls out loudly, ‘Utho rozay daro’ and makes sure that the thunderous beat of his drum along with his slogans are loud enough to wake up all residents living in that particular locality.

Sometimes, the drumbeaters or men on motorcycles visit the streets in small groups with the purpose of increasing the volume and melody of the drumming whereas some also recite Naats and Qawwalis, in many cases ‘Shah-e-Madina’, in order to add a spiritual touch to the whole affair.

In some localities of the city, groups of Madrassah students perform this job usually by beating an empty cooking oil tin canister, which serves the same purpose due to its shrill sound.

“It is hard to imagine Ramazan without these drumbeaters, who although do not have the same importance nowadays as they once used to but they still contribute to the traditional flavour of the holy month,” said Ali Ahmad, a resident of Army Colony, Chaklala.

Interestingly, most area people do not even recognise the faces of the people who perform the noble duty of waking people up during the whole month and it is only on the Eid day when they appear smilingly at our doorsteps to demand their share of ‘Eidi’ from each house in the street.

“We just listen to their sounds and hardly come across face to face with them but they are the people, who create a religious atmosphere in the early hours,” said Ali Humayun, a resident of Muslim Town, adding that it is only on Eid Day when we see them in person and give them ‘Eidi’, as they perform a really hard job during the whole month.

There is usually more than one person deputed to perform this duty in the same area that might confuse the residents in recognising them on Eid day, but these people have adopted a simple strategy to ease the confusion. The ‘dhol wala’ on Eid day will enter the street while beating his drum, the Madrassah students while beating their tins and those reciting Naats or Qawwalis, all will come in the same manner as they used to during Ramazan to demand the reward of the hectic job they had been performing. “My kids really want to see and appreciate the uncles, who sacrifice their sleep for the sake of other people,” said Saira Rani, a resident of Muslim Town.

Worthy or worthless, this age old traditional practice of drum beating to wake up the faithful for ‘sehri’ has remained with us for centuries and its cultural delight in the holy month has undoubtedly not diminished in the modern times.