By Clarion India
Mohammad Asif Khan
IN the heart of Varanasi, a city revered as the holiest for Hindus and the parliamentary constituency of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, lies the historic Dalmandi Market.
Its labyrinthine lanes buzz with activity, cycle rickshaws weaving past scooters, the air thick with the aroma of chai and spices, and vibrant fabric stores spilling onto the streets. Hindu pilgrims in saffron robes pass by as Muslim shopkeepers arrange their wares.
Named after the lentil traders who once dominated the area, Dalmandi (Dal means lentils) has been a hub for merchants, craftsmen, and shopkeepers for centuries.
It was also home to Ustad Bismillah Khan, the legendary musician who was a symbol of Varanasi’s blended culture.
“The ghats (riverfront steps leading to the Ganges river) are the same, the temple is the same. I pray at the mosque, and then I go to the temple to play my shehnai. This was our way, simple, like a fakir (an ascetic who renounces material comforts) life,” he once reminisced.
His shehnai, a type of oboe, echoed through the old lanes of Dalmandi as effortlessly as the azaan, the Muslim call for five daily prayers, rose from nearby mosques. His life and music embodied Varanasi’s Ganga-Jamuni tehzeeb (a syncretic culture symbolising Hindu-Muslim unity).
This story was originally published in clarionindia.net. Read the full story here.
