Tuesday, 31 March 2015

Saed-Muqar and Kuli-Faqir

Among many other professional beggars, kuli-faqir, and Saed-muqar are two tribes of beggars in the valley. Kuli faqir are notorious for their cheating, koker chuer and other petty thefts. They even steal clothes on the rope meant for drying. Their men folk stay back and take to gambling while women folk earn for them. They are nomads and speak a number of languages including pastu. Until my exodus, one such tribe was at Parimpora-bypass crossing. Saed Muqars are professional beggars and they neither cheat anybody nor do they steal from any household. Kulifaqir and Saedmuqar shift to Mumbai and other places of Maharashtra during winter months. On their arrival Maharashtrians pass a word of caution "Chiuenchue aa ghaia". Saedmuqar are not cheats. They like Govinda, Jackie Shroff and other retired Bollywood actors caution people of evil to come and ask for some money to ward off the evil against money. There is one more class of beggars from Chachebal Kulgam. They pose as Hindu in Hindu locality and as Muslim in Muslim locality. They keep two types of caps in their bag. Some of them pose as students from Khanbal College and collect money and ration for flood/ fire/ earthquake and other natural calamity  victims as per the circumstances. Nineties they posed as Kashmiri Pundits in Delhi and other cities.
https://youtu.be/fn7cTdNEA4M
Brij Krishan Dass's photo.



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