Ramzaan, The Halwa Puri Seller حلوہ پورى والا

Ramzaan frying puri's

Ramzaan makes Halwa Puri in a narrow street inside Lohari Gate of the Walled City of Old Lahore. He has been in this profession for the past 50 years and he now owns this shop. He works the whole day on Sunday's and only during the evenings on the other days. He and his family live in a small apartment over his shop. He has three children. When asked how much he earns, he said "Enough to support my family".

Halwa Puri Recipe

Cotton Candy Seller لچهے والا

handing cotton candy to the little girl

Muhammad Shafi has been selling cotton candy in the streets of Lahore for the past almost 12 years. Before that he was a laborer and used to assist in constructing buildings. He makes cotton candy early morning using sugar and food colors on a cotton candy making machine and leaves his house to earn his livelihood. According to him, he makes around Rs. 700/- per day.

He has 4 daughters who are at home and do nothing. When asked why they are not studying, the only answer he gave was that he cannot afford to send them to school. Although he belongs to Jhang, he and his family have moved to Lahore to make a better living for themselves.

Qeema Tikki Vendor قىمہ ٹكى والا

Making Qeema Tikki's

Khalid dropping a Qeema Tikki in hot oil

 Khalid has been making Qeema tikki's, Kachori's and halwa puri in Lahore for the past 45 years. He started when his daily wage was 25 paisas and a puri cost 1 paisa (1 Rupee = 100 Paisa's and 1$ = approximately 85 Rupees). Today he works for a roadside shop which pays him Rs. 500/-per day and he makes around Rs. 15,000/- per month. Khalid works 7 days a week and hardly ever takes a day off. For him Sunday is the busiest as he starts preparing for his sale at 1:00 AM in the morning and keeps on selling till the evening. He also makes food for wedding functions when required. Khalid never married and is taking care of his parents. 

Qeema Tikki is made of mince meat mixture filled in dough made of flour and oil and is deep fried. A Kachori is a smaller version of a Qeema Tikki. Halwa Puri comprises of three things: puri which is flour oil and salt dough rolled out to make small circles and then deep fried, chickpea and potato curry and sweet dish made of semolina (suji). Sunday is the busiest day for such vendors as most of the people wake up early in the morning and either bring such breakfast at home or go out to eat.

Flower Vendor (Phool Wala) پھول والا

Amir, the flower seller

A street flower vendor shop

Amir is a flower vendor and works for a street shop which sells flowers. Flowers in Lahore are sold for many purposes, mainly for wedding decorations. Some people also buy flowers to place on the tombs of Saints and graves of their loved ones. Amir starts his day at 5:00 AM in the morning and keeps on working till 1:00 AM at night, seven days a week. He belongs to Shakargarh but has come to Lahore to earn a living. The little free time he gets, he sleeps in the shop. His fixed salary is Rs. 200/- per day which amounts to Rs. 6,000/- per month or approximately $70/-. He has six siblings. three brothers and three sisters to look after. When asked if he is happy with his job, all he said was that he has to do this for a living.