Back in 1990s, Tharis would tune in to the 8pm BBC-Urdu news bulletin everyday. They used to say that they could not digest food without listening to the BBC news. However, PEMRA (Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority) banned local news in Urdu in 2007.
They preferred radio to any other form of entertainment. Every household owned a Casio or Sanyo radio. “Our relatives and friends living in India used to ask us to send them radios from Pakistan. We used to gift radios to Indian,” says a local resident of Thar.
The lucky ones who have access to electricity can watch TV and listen to songs and news on BBC India. In some areas, people can use 2G or 3G Internet to listen to news online or have bought android mobile phones to use WhatsApp and Facebook.
Both Muslims and Hindus live in Thar. According to the 1998 consensus, Muslims constitute about 59 percent of the population while Hindus constitute the remaining 41 percent of the total population of the region. Many Hindu tribes migrated to India in 1965.
Thar has always been a place of peace and hospitality. There was no visible difference between Hindus and Muslims -- their food and drink, customs and rituals were almost the same.
However, with the passage of time, the culture of Thar has changed.
Tharis would tune in to the 8pm BBC-Urdu news bulletin everyday. They used to say that they could not digest food without listening to the BBC news.
In the olden days, people were considered lucky whose otaques many people visited. They considered it their good fortune to entertain guests. Charpais were laid out, pots and matkas were filled with water, it was kept clean, and some spots were covered with jeeroi (a locally woven carpet). Doodh patti was served generously.
Whoever owned a radio used to bring it to the otaque and they would collectively listen to news with interest. They would share the cost of radio batteries. When men went to work, women listened to radio eagerly.
“Our elders told us that two things were difficult to achieve in Thar: to run an otaque and to dig a well,” says Narayan Das Thakur of Jassar village of Chachro Tharparkar. “They said these two were equivalent to catching a lion by the ears.”
Tharis with frequently visited otaques and a well were much respected.
Allahbachio, an old resident of Nagarparkar, says that a couple belonging to Thakur tribe was very hospitable. “The man remarried after the death of his wife. The second wife was not as hospitable as the first one. One day, 5 to 6 guests came to his otaque. He asked his new wife to cook some bread. She initially refused but in anger she cooked raw millet roti. The man got very upset. He spread some desi ghee and gur on rotis, and served them graciously to the guest.”
Today, a guest is usually a source of concern in Thar. They get worried. They are not as generous as they were before.
The oataque culture is disappearing in Thar. Peoples’ attitudes, behaviour and priorities have changed.
Adam Nohari of village Khyaru still follows the old traditions of Thar. He receives guests in the same way as his elders. He serves them hot food. He is the living example of old Thari lifestyle.