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End of fasting, time to celebrate: Family, food and a lot of fun!

As the month of fasting comes to an end, youngsters in the city talk about an astonishing variety of local customs around these days.

As the month of fasting comes to an end, youngsters in the city talk about an astonishing variety of local customs around these days, riches of dishes and other traditions, making Id-ul-Fitr special.

Abbas Mohammed, Azharuddin's son

Abbas Mohammed, Azharuddin's sonAbbas Mohammed, Azharuddin's son

After a month of fasting and prayers, it does feel really nice to get together and celebrate. And the first thing I do after my prayers in the morning is visiting my paternal grandmother. Everyone in the family meets at her place and we just spend the entire day with each other. My grandmother makes some of the most delicious delicacies and we just indulge in them. Towards the evening, all my cousins plan an outing and we make sure the end the night with each other. The one thing I do miss (laughs) is the Idi. Now that I've grown big, I don't get Idi anymore, instead I have to give it to my younger cousins!

Hesham BabuKhan, Son of Anjum Babukhan

Hesham BabuKhan, Son of Anjum BabukhanHesham BabuKhan, Son of Anjum Babukhan

Id is one day when the entire family gets together, but the first thing we do is go to the mosque and offer prayers. After that we come home, and there is an open house all day long! The one tradition that our family has been following is very special. Every year on Id my grandmother gives us Idi and while doing so, she always makes sure that she applies a little ittar on us. What makes the festival even more special is that she always picks out our clothes for us!

Shiraz Mirza, Partner at Olive Bistro, Hyderabad

Shiraz Mirza, Partner at Olive Bistro, HyderabadShiraz Mirza, Partner at Olive Bistro, Hyderabad

I’m not a very traditional person but no matter what happens, Id means family time. We always get together and just spend the entire day with each other. One tradition that we abide by is meeting the entire family at our ancestral property. No one stays there, but on Id the entire family meets there and we have lunch. That’s something we all look forward to, every year.

Faraaz Khan, 21, Son of Faiz Khan Paigah

Faraaz Khan, 21, Son of Faiz Khan PaigahFaraaz Khan, 21, Son of Faiz Khan Paigah

It’s basically a time for family. In the morning we start off with our prayers in the masjid, come back and greet our elders. Then we always go out to our maternal grandparents’ place and have lunch with them. In the evening we head back home and my father’s friends come over. We also wait for Id because they serve us delicious food like sheer khorma, and you have a special kind of hunger for it during Eid — any other time of the year you wouldn’t be as interested in eating it. We make it a point to have a family dinner at our house, and it’s like a reunion for us who are from different parts of the world. We sit down, have a meal and catch up with everything that’s happening in all of our lives.

Syeda Falak, karate champion

Syeda Falak, karate championSyeda Falak, karate champion

Our day starts off with prayers and the rest of it is spent meeting family and friends. After a month of fasting, the feast that awaits us is a joy.
However, young kids, especially girls always make me laugh on Id. They, just like I did when I was a kid, wake up early, dress up and make sure they carry a purse with them, so that whenever they receive their Idi, they always have their purse along!

Shaaz Mehmood, Partner at Olive Bistro and SodaBottleOpenerWala

Shaaz Mehmood, Partner at Olive Bistro and SodaBottleOpenerWalaShaaz Mehmood, Partner at Olive Bistro and SodaBottleOpenerWala

Id starts off early for us and we first go to pray and only then follow up on everything else. Since this is my first Id since I moved into my own house, I will be going home to celebrate with the rest of the family. Apart from the usual, where we meet family and friends, we never miss out on one thing — lunch at my maternal grandmother’s home. This Id lunch started back in 1960 and since then, has been followed. Now, three generations of the family get together. It’s a huge affair and we don’t even invite our friends, everyone knows that on Id they all get together there.

( Source : Deccan Chronicle. )
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