RAWALPINDI:
With the holy month of Ramazan just around the corner, the Sehri and Iftar market has been set up at the 200-year-old Kartarpura Central Bazaar, a historic market place dating back to the pre-partition era of the subcontinent.
For the past 80 years, this Sehri bazaar has been serving a variety of delicious and spicy traditional dishes every Ramazan.
The market becomes formally active at sunset on Wednesday.
Shops have been decorated with colorful lights, high-voltage bulbs and street lighting, giving the bazaar a dinner-like appearance even at midnight during Sehri time.
This year, hard tiles have been installed in the market, which removes previous wear and enhances its beauty. Shops and surrounding areas have been freshly painted. Vendors from Lahore and Gujranwala have also arrived to prepare and sell a variety of spicy Sehri dishes and acquire temporary stalls at high rents for a month.
Shopkeepers and helpers wear proper uniforms and colorful turbans to attract customers. The historic bazaar includes 35 shops and stalls.
Its nihari, paye and channay pathoray are particularly famous and draw regular female customers even from Islamabad.
From the first of Ramazan to Eidul Fitr, the market remains at its peak from 17.00 to 05.00.
Under glittering lights, the midnight Sehri scene looks like noon. Available items include nihari, pathoray, sweet thick lassi, sweet yogurt, qeema naan, aloo naan, saag with buttered corn roti, small and large paye, small and large ojhri, qeema matar, mutton aloo, beef aloo, roast chicken, chicken boti, chicken tikka makhni, karabab nakahni, karabab nasami, beef nana, beef naan, sesame and kalonji naan, paratha, tandoori paratha, roghni naan, plain roti and qeema aloo dishes.
Six varieties of nihari are available: plain nihari, maghaz nihari, mix nihari and bong nihari among the most popular. However, the prices this year are described as “smoke coming out of the ears.”
