Amid Ramzan, demand for attar shoots up in Hyderabad

Abids, Moazzam Jahi Market, Afzal Gunj, and Charminar are a few must-visit places to buy attar in Hyderabad

Hyderabad: With the holy month of Ramzan underway, shops and stores selling attar across the city are seeing huge footfalls. People can be seen applying the attar on their hands and trying the fragrance to pick the right one, while shop owners can be seen suggesting and explaining to people about different varieties of attar and their significance.

Abids, Moazzam Jahi Market, Afzal Gunj, and Charminar are a few must-visit places to buy attar in Hyderabad. People who stroll along these areas can see rows of shops with attar packed in glass bottles.

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During the holy month, many prefer traditional attar over sprays and perfumes containing alcohol and other chemicals. Unlike other body sprays, deodorants, and perfumes, attar is made naturally with flowers, roots, leaves, and herbs. There is a huge demand for attar fragrances such as Oudh, Hina, Shamama, Motia, Kush, Sandal, Gulab, and others in the city.

Many prefer Khas, Shamama, Sandal, and Gulab fragrances during summer to cool their senses. In addition to traditional attar, premium attar imported from the UAE and European countries are also in great demand. Imported varieties of attar fragrances available in the market include Amber Rose, Mumtaz, Royal Woody, Royal Attar Sheik, Khususi, Patchouli, Citrus floral, Oudh Rose, and others.

Saleh Ahmed, manager at the Ajmal Perfumes in Abids, said attar is nothing but fragrance made by blending natural oils without adding alcohol. “Attar is concentrated perfume oil and it last longer than other perfumes. Prices of attar start from Rs 250 for 10 ml and go up to even Rs 20,000 for 10 ml. Apart from attar, people also buy Bakhoor (Dhoop) for home use, and the same is also used in Masjids,” said Saleh Ahmed. While imported attar is preferred by the younger lot, the traditional attar is favoured by middle age people and the elderly.

Like every year, this season too, many traders have introduced new attar fragrances to attract customers. “We have introduced new fragrances such as Burmi, Hawass, Oudh-Al-Badar, Shan-E-Arab, and Ameer-Al-Oudh. The prices of these range between Rs 500 for 10 ml and Rs 2,000 for 10 ml,” said Mohammed Faisal, a trader at the Moazzam Jahi Market.