Keeping alive centuries-old traditions of storytelling and serving Peshawari Qehwa (green tea), Qissa Khwani, South Asia’s oldest bazaar, attracts tourists in droves with its rich cultural diversity, Mughal-era architectural buildings and the aroma of cuisines.
The primitive and archaic culture of Qissa Khwani attracts the attention of tourists before they visit its food restaurants and Qehwa shops where they exchange stories of ancient culture, music and traditional norms by enjoying the aroma of delicious food including Chappal Kabab, Mutton Karahi, fried fish , roast chicken. , Kabli Pulao, Kulfi-Falooda (Dessert) along with the famous Qehwa (Green Tea).
Located in the heart of Peshawar near the historic forts of Chowk Yadgar, Ghanta Ghar and Balahisar, Bazaar Qissa Khwani has remained a key commercial and cultural center where international traders from the subcontinent, Afghanistan and Central Asia would hang out at night and share stories of love and culture. art and architecture, music and tradition before their departure to their respective destinations.
The bazaar starts at Kabuli Gate, which can be reached in just 8 to 10 minutes after alighting from the BRT station at Khyber Bazaar, and takes tourists back to prehistoric times after seeing centuries-old architectural buildings, handicraft shops, food restaurants and primitive Qehwa Khanas.
During its heyday, the bazaar served as an encampment for trade caravans of merchants from Delhi, Amritsar, Lahore, Kabul, Dushanbe, Ashgabat and Tashkent entering the city gates to unload their wares.
The bazaar witnessed the vigor of great warriors, invaders and kings including Alexander the Great, Mehmood Ghaznvi, Zaheeruddin Babar, Nadir Shah, Ahmed Shah Durrani and his grandson Shah Zaman who marched through the famous Khyber Pass during their invasions of India. The history of Qissa Khwani is believed to be as old as the history of Peshawar,” said Noor Khan, Incharge Peshawar Museum while talking to APP.
“Recent archaeological excavations at the ancient Gor Khatri have created a historical profile of the city, which has claimed Peshawar as the ‘oldest living city’ in South Asia with a primitive history dating back to 539 BC. Noor said the Gor Khatri excavations were the deepest and largest in the world, revealing 20 layers of soil to provide a complete profile of the ancient city from the British to the Indo-Greek era.
The unique tradition of telling stories and drinking Qehwa has thus become an integral part of the Qissa Khwani culture, which continues despite the passing centuries. Tourists can also glimpse the ancestral homes of Bollywood superstars, including Yousaf Khan aka Dalip Kumar in Mohallah Khudadad, Raj Kapoor’s father Prithvi Raj’s Haveli and Shah Rukh Khan’s family residence in Shah Wali Qatal.
“Peshawar’s Qissa Khwani and Dilip Kumar sahib are inseparable,” Faud Ishaq, former president of Sarhad Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SCCI) and Peshawar-born nephew of Indian film legend Dilip Kumar, told APP.
He said Dilip Kumar’s love for Peshawar can be judged from his will in which he wished to use his ancestral home for the welfare of Peshawar.
Dilip Kumar visited Peshawar in 1988 and 1998 where he was welcomed by hundreds of thousands of his fans at Qissa Khawani. “Dilip Sahib wished to see his ancestral house when he came to Peshawar in 1998. So we set out to visit his house between 1.30 am and 2.00 am (midnight) but could not get there due to the presence of hundreds of thousands of his fans . who arrived at Qissa Khwani to see a few glimpses of the hero of Mughal e Azam,” recalled Faud Ishaq.
Havali of Raj Kapoor’s father Prithvi Raj, who moved to Bombay in 1930 where he conquered the South Asian film industry as both actor and producer, laying down the first Bollywood dynasty spanning some four generations, also attracted visitors at Dhaki Nalbandi near Qissa. Khwani.
The home of Taj Muhammad Khan, the father of Bollywood legend Shah Rukh Khan was located in Shah Wali Katal Qissa Khawani where his celebrated son had a good time with his family members during his teenage visit to Pakistan, Shah Rukh’s home is also a source of attraction for tourists and his movie fans.
Besides, the domed white marble monument built in the middle of the bazaar to honor all those martyred in the Qissa Khwani massacre by the British troops in 1930 also remained a center of attraction for many. The British Commissioner of Peshawar, Herbert Edwards, was very fond of Qissa Khwani, who called her the ‘Piccadilly of South Asia’. During colonial rule, the British used informers to know public opinion about administrative decisions by instructing them to visit urban areas and bring “Qissa Khawani Gazzattee”.
“After the creation of Pakistan, its tea stalls were the center of political discussions where locals exchanged views on the political situation in the country, the Mohtarma Fatima Jinnah-Gen Ayub Khan presidential election, the 1965 Pak-India War, the 1974 OIC Lahore Summit and a number of sporting and cultural events. events from 1960-75 apart from winning the 1992 Cricket World Cup,” Fazl Rehman, owner of the famous Mohmand Qehwa on Shah Wali Qatal Street in Qissa Khwani, told APP.
Qissa Khwani witnessed a sharp decline in tourist arrivals between 2001-13 when terrorists targeted this cultural hub of Peshawar, claiming so many precious lives, including senior minister Bashir Ahmed Bilour in 2012 and CCPO Malik Muhammad Saad Shaheed in 2007.
“Terrorist attacks and the later corona lockdown had an adverse effect on Qehwa’s business and cultural activities in addition to affecting Qehwa’s business in Qissa Khwani,” Fazal said.
“Despite economic losses, we continued to do business even in times when people were afraid to visit this ancient market,” said Fazlur Rehman. “Making Qehva is my passion, which I inherited from my father in 1970.
Most of the visitors ask for green tea ‘Qahwa’ while many ask for green tea with milk, locally known as ‘Sheen Da Payo’, a special Qisakhwani tea item,” he said. The Qehwa manufacturer said that in Qissa Khwani, after the lifting of corona restrictions in the recent past, he witnessed an increase in the number of tourists, which had a positive impact on the business of Qehwa, adding that domestic travelers from Punjab, Swat, Chitral, Nowshera and Upper Dir were seen in large numbers. . numbers these days. “I came from Khewra Punjab to enjoy Chapal Kabab along with traditional Qehwa at Qisa Khwani bazaar,” Khurshid Alam, deputy manager of Mineral Development Corporation of Pakistan, told this agency.
“My visit to Peshawar remains incomplete without visiting this historic street for Chappli Kabab and Peshawari Qehwa,” he said. “Qisa Khwani is the identity of Peshawar and a lot of effort needs to be done to preserve its cultural heritage, architecture, art works and by preserving its beauty and primitive heritage, considerable revenue could be generated,” said Shaukat Ali Khan, Chairman, Central Organization for Trad.
