Charminar’s shadow hosts a quiet mehfil of poetry and tea

Under the shadow of the Charminar, a quiet gathering unfolds every Thursday evening. Hyderabad’s old city, often loud with the bustle of shops and traffic, falls into a different rhythm. A mehfil—an intimate assembly of poetry, tea, and conversation—has taken root in the square below the monument.

Regulars call it a return to the city’s soul. The event, started by a group of local poets and culture enthusiasts, draws a small but dedicated crowd. They sit on mats spread on the cobblestones, sipping chai from clay cups, listening to couplets recited in Urdu.

Poetry under the minarets

The Charminar has long been a symbol of Hyderabad’s syncretic culture. Built in 1591, it has witnessed centuries of change. But the mehfil is a recent addition—a deliberate effort to reclaim public space for art and dialogue.

“This is where the city’s heartbeat is,” says one of the organizers, a retired professor who prefers to remain unnamed. “We wanted to bring back the tradition of open-air poetry readings. The Charminar is the perfect backdrop.”

The evenings begin at dusk. A small sound system is set up near the monument’s archway. Participants take turns at the microphone, reciting ghazals, nazms, and sometimes original verses. The audience listens in silence, broken only by occasional applause or a soft ‘wah wah’ of appreciation.

Chai and camaraderie

Tea is central to the mehfil. A vendor sets up a small stall nearby, brewing kadak chai with cardamom and ginger. Clay cups are passed around, and the cost is shared collectively. No money changes hands for the poetry.

“It’s not about performance,” says a young software engineer who attends regularly. “It’s about being together. In a city that’s changing fast, this feels like an anchor.”

The mehfil has grown organically. Word spreads through social media and local WhatsApp groups. On any given Thursday, between 30 and 50 people show up. Some are retirees, others are students, and a few are tourists who stumble upon the gathering.

Reviving a tradition

Hyderabad has a rich history of mushairas—poetry symposiums that were once a staple of its cultural calendar. Over the decades, these gatherings have become less common, confined to auditoriums or private homes. The Charminar mehfil seeks to bring them back to the public eye.

“The old city is changing,” says a local historian who has attended the mehfil. “But traditions like this remind us that culture is not static. It adapts. This is a new form of an old practice.”

Organizers say they have not sought any official permission. The gathering is informal and non-political. The police have not interfered. “We are just people sitting and talking,” one organizer says. “What’s there to stop?”

The mehfil has also attracted attention from young poets who write in Hindi and English, adding a contemporary layer to the Urdu-heavy sessions. Some evenings feature a mix of languages, reflecting Hyderabad’s multilingual fabric.

As the night deepens, the crowd thins. The chai vendor packs up. The sound system is switched off. The Charminar, lit up against the dark sky, stands silent. The mehfil ends—but next Thursday, it will resume.

What began as a small experiment now seems to have found its place. Whether it will grow into a permanent fixture or remain a fleeting moment of calm in a busy city remains to be seen. For now, under the shadow of the minarets, poetry and tea continue to hold their ground.