By S. Kenneth Shishir
Ramzan holy month is definitely about tasting varieties when it comes to food and everyone in city — irrespective of caste and religion — get together to savour the delights as an assortment of dishes from across the country make an entry, bringing about diversity to the kind of food culture that Ramzan brings. Come Ramzan and Mysureans enjoy delicacies like Hyderabadi Haleem, vegetarian and non-vegetarian samosas, dry fruits, dates, sweets and juices which are specially prepared for the occasion. While the whole city reverberates in festive spirit, shops in areas where Muslim community dominates such as Mandi Mohalla, Udayagiri, Shanthinagar, Lashkar Mohalla, Rajivnagar, etc. are a hub of activity. Some shops which regularly attract customers with their delicacies are S.A. Samosa Corner on Hyder Ali Road near Forum Centre for vegetarian samosas, Azam Samosa Centre on Ashoka Road opposite Masjid-e-Azam for non-vegetarian Samosas and Mughliya Cool Drink centre for special juices. Old and time-tested shops offer exotic delicacies to food lovers — from delicious biryani to irresistible desserts and refreshing sharbats. Apart from food, there is perfume that is a great hit during Ramzan. Dubai Centre on Meena Bazaar Road sells Attar imported from Dubai along with perfumes without alcohol, Islamic calligraphy artefacts from Egypt, Surmai (Kajal) from Madina in Saudi Arabia, exotic leather handbags for ladies, hand-crafted skull-caps from Indonesia among other items.
