Here, silent marriage functions are music to residents’ ears
BAREILLY: When guests reached the residence of Muhammad Ikrar Beg on October 8 to attend his son’s wedding in Faridapur area here, they complained that they could not easily locate the venue as there was no arrangement of music.
“People could not imagine a marriage function without any sound and music. I had to explain to them the rule of our locality,” says Beg.
PEOPLE SAY THAT BONDING AMONG THE RESIDENTS HELPED FARIDAPUR UNITE AGAINST LOUD MUSIC
About 1,000-odd households of Faridapur area in north Bareilly have made it a norm that no family will use loud music at functions and those violating the rule will have to face social boycott. Their move has, to some extent, helped in keeping noise pollution in check in the area.
Most of the inhabitants of the locality are Muslims whose lives depend on the adda (embroidery frame to make zari). “Ours is a closely knit society where people know each other. It is more like a village than a modern locality,” says local councillor Mohd Akil ‘Guddu’.
People say that bonding among the residents helped Faridapur unite against loud music, which according to local Imams, is the “making of the devil himself”.
“Loud music is considered ‘haraam’ (forbidden) in Islam and is prohibited. This was the first thing we made people realise before asking them not to engage disc jockeys (DJ) during functions at their houses,” says Mohd Ejaz Ahmed Barkati, 28, who came up with the idea to ban loud music in the locality.
“Last year, my grandmother fell ill after loud music was played in a marriage function in my neighbourhood,” says Barkati.
Though his idea was praised, it was tough to change the people. “I personally met the residents, wrote letters to authorities urging them to prevent the use of loud music but nobody paid heed to my demand. I decided to approach the imams and elders of the locality to seek support,” he says.
Elderly people, who were affected the most by loud music, came in his support. Imams also announced they would not read ‘nikaah’ if loud music was played at functions.After getting the support of all the Imams, a total ban on loud music in marriage functions was announced.
“We went door-to-door to inform the people about it and sought their support,” says Barkati.The group even took undertakings from the heads of the families that they will not use loud music in functions.
The group has collected 600 signatures in the last two months and the last four marriages in the area were held without loud music. Three families cancelled booking for DJ and two DJ operators in the area have shifted their business out of the locality.
“Initially, we were sceptical of not using DJ in the wedding of our only son but nobody missed loud music. Some of the guests even praised me for my decision,” says Mohd Aslam Beg who organised a marriage function without music at his place last week.