Ramzan, Hyderabad and Haleem : Deadly combo

I am sure most of you would have heard about Haleem. Haleem is the buzzword and the flavor of the season for the holy month of Ramzan.

(A haleem counter)

Haleem is a non vegetarian dish made with either minced chicken, mutton or camel meat. It takes somewhere around ten hours to make this dish.

( A Pista House outlet at Mehdipatnam)
I fell for it last year when I had a chance to try at Bangalore during Ramzaan. But I was told that Hyderabad is the place to have Haleem if one has to appreciate it honestly.

(waiters who serve people on the road. they walk upto the cars and deliver them, without the customers having to go till the counters)

And as luck would have it, I am at Hyderabad to witness its magic all by myself. I was eagerly awaiting for Ramzaan to begin. I was growing curious to see the whole city being decked up like a bride as the days approached. Building and shops were spruced with decorative lights. And numerous new makeshift stalls are installed that read "Fresh Haleem available". Shops had set up counters that counted number of days left for Ramzaan. I picked up my camera to record this fervour. I was told by a fellow Muslim colleague to visit Charminar old city to catch the mood. And that too just a day before Id, that marks the end of the holy month. But sadly i would be in my Himalayan odyssey during Id. So I picked last Friday. I was disappointed because I couldn't the crowd that i wanted to see at Charminar. And I wish I could be here during Id which turns into an ocean of people. Shops stretch to the roads. vehicles are blocked with barricades. People throng to the streets with their families to shop and gorge on delicacies of all varieties. (See the pic above)

(Hotel Shadaam )

I did my bit of research on Haleem and came to know that Pista House has been a brand at Hyderabad for delivering quality haleem year after year. The other famous Haleem offerings were from Hotel Shabad, Hotel Medina, all from Charminar.

( Hotel Madina)

I got a taste from Pista House at Charminar and was not disappointed. A word of caution though. Haleem is a high calorie dish, rich with fats and is so filling that wouldn't feel hungry till the next day. I found hundreds of other Haleem shops dotting the city around.

( Medina staff)

Never have I seen such fervour in any other city as Hyderabad during Ramzaan. Not even Delhi. Njoy the pics.

Veg Haleem for a change ;)

The orginal Pista House Outlet

sawaiyaan!!!!