Dhol walas waging a losing battle

RAWALPINDI:

Around six months ago, Karam Dad came to Rawalpindi as work dried up in his village in Sargodha’s Khushab district.

Having played the dhol, the traditional drum, for the last 20 years, he had seen opportunities become fewer as disc jockeys and bands with humongous music systems replaced them at weddings, festivities and even political gatherings.

The situation seems to be worse in Rawalpindi, according to Dad. “I have been sitting daily on the pavement near Murree Road but have gotten only five assignments so far,” he told The Express Tribune. “Back in the day, we barely had time and were often booked days in advance.”

Now, Dad says, traditional dhol walas have been replaced by DJs and digital devices. He said in areas where such bands were not available, people use social media to find an alternative.

Dad does not have any digital presence or the wherewithal to manage it. Instead, he relies on the traditional method of being available at his ‘regular spot’ or to make a beeline for wherever any festivity is taking place.

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But such treks are not always successful. “Often, we see a celebration and go there with the dhol hanging from our only to be turned away.”

He said the situation was so dire that hundreds of such performers who had travelled to Rawalpindi for livelihood had to go multiple days without work.

“Many have started work as daily-wage labourers and some of them have even sold their drums and trumpets,” said Dad.

He said the situation was the same across the province, with families who had been in the profession for generations now involved in a different line of work.

Muhammad Moiz, who came to Rawalpindi from Kandian, is another such drummer whose regular haunt is near Liaquat Bagh.

He wistfully talks about the time when their arrival at a wedding or festivity would see revelers encircle them.

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Even when processions were in cars, they would slow down for the percussive beats of the dhol walas they tailed them on foot.

“Now, people invite drummers to their jalsas (political gathering). They book DJs for millions of rupees who have modern music systems. We cannot compete with that,” Moiz says.

For Moiz, the booming sound systems are the death knell for traditional drummers. “The dhol culture in Punjab is on its last leg.” The dhol walas remain popular during harvest but that makes them precious little, says Moiz. “Other than that, we are reduced to being a symbolic presence at cultural fairs.”

Until a decade ago, a celebration felt incomplete without someone playing the dhol, says another traditional drummer Karam Deen. “Two of my sons used to play drums. But due to lack of work, they had to quit and become car mechanics,” says Deen, who is in his sixties.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 23^rd, 2023.