Article Written By EIH Researcher And Writer
Shamiksha Mallick
Smoking, though a harmful process, is a relevant cultural practice across the globe. It’s interesting to know how this practice facilitates social interaction and exchange of ideas among the people. Such an interaction is often observed in the villages of Haryana, where smoking is done using a traditional smoking device called a Hookah which in simple words is a smoking pipe.
Hookah is a complex device which requires time and patience to be carved out. It is a long narrow smoking pipe used to take in tobacco, that draws smoke from the water that is in a bowl. A number of parts like chillum, gatta, necha, gajj and many more are assembled to make a hookah. The lower bottom is a tanki wherein the water is stored. The tanki is also replaced at intervals to ensure the taste is unaffected. The part from where the filtered smoke is drawn is a neh that is attached on the end of kulfi. Every piece of a hookah is made separately with detail and precision. The craftspersons of Dadri district use the Rohida wood to make the hookah. The ‘Tambaccu’ that is smoked through a hookah is a combination of tobacco leaves and lada that is molten jaggery in the uniform ratio of 1:1. If the ratio is changed to be uneven, then two types of Hookahs are formed – Meetha hookah and Kauda hookah. Moreover, the flavour and taste in a hookah is also affected by the rise in temperature.
A symbol of brotherhood, the Haryaanvis take pride in their hookahs and it is one of the significant items that is often spotted in a typical Haryaanvi household. Alternatively, a hookah also has variations like hookhi, hookti or kali. Smoking is used as a way to relax as Haryana is an agricultural state. It is also suggested that smoking through Hookah isn’t just a mere leisure activity for the people but is also a means that facilitates social gatherings and interactions. The hookah is usually prepared by using tobacco and coal by the youngest people in the group of smokers. It is then first given to the elders in the household as a sign of reverence and respect. As you step into the villages of Haryana in the evening, you will often discover a bunch of places where old men gather together, squating under a tree to have hookah together and talk about their daily hustles. Smoking through hookah is a proper tradition that involves certain patterns that are observed in most of the hookah gatherings. One gathering has one hookah only which is passed on from one person to the other to smoke. This was interestingly a major cause of concern for the Haryana government during the pandemic too as it involved indirect contact and it is a deeply engraved practice that can’t be done away with. ‘Panchon ka Pyala’, as popularly known by the people, is a phrase that describes the hookah gatherings in simple words. It suggests how a group of five people usually gather to smoke together and discuss the stories of the village.
This practice is so relevant that if a person is disapproved of by the people of the area, then his ‘hookah pani’ is cut off which means he isn’t allowed in the gatherings thus showing how such gatherings decide a person’s status and respect in the community. Women also smoke hookah, however, not publicly. They also form their groups and share this practice in the privacy of the four walls of their homes. The device used by elderly women to smoke is often called a hookhi which is a smaller pipe. They usually take in the meethi hookhi and sometimes it’s also considered to be a medicinal remedy if taken in limited quantities. Interestingly, the daughter-in-laws dont smoke with the older women of the house. They are allowed to do so once they reach a certain age.
Hookah gatherings have also taken a new twist as the Hookahs have infiltrated the pubs and bars of Gurugram. It is now considered a tool for bonding and interaction amongst the youngsters as well. So that is how hookah smoking, though being a harmful practice, is not simply a tool but rather a facilitator of social interactions and community development.
REFERENCES:
In villages, Covid casts a cloud on gatherings at hookah chaupals
https://www.google.com/amp/s/m.timesofindia.com/city/noida/in-villages-covid-casts-a-cloud-on-gatherings-at-hookah-chaupals/amp_articleshow/82893564.cms
Chewing gum ban good but Haryana’s hookah culture can be real Covid-19 culprit
https://theprint.in/opinion/pov/chewing-gum-ban-good-but-haryanas-hookah-culture-can-be-real-covid-19-culprit/394848/?amp
Hookahs from Haryana: Panchon ka Pyaala’
https://artsandculture.google.com/story/hookahs-from-haryana-panchon-ka-pyaala-dicrc-cept-university/NwWBl7bwTxSgLA?hl=en
