User:Uch01/Culture of Lahore

Culture of Lahore (under construction)

Food
Food of lahore is traditionally Punjabi food with a mix of currys, lentiles, beans and spices. Although it has embraced food from all over Pakistan, Punjabi food remains the most popular. While traditionally American fast food and Chinese food have been famous, in recent years more foreign cuisine has become increasingly popular inclusing Thai, mexican and italian foods.

Most people at home eat Pakistani food, although western cuisine is cathing up. Staple diet includes lentils, bread and rice and several forms of 'salan' (known in the west as curry). Lahoris are very conservative when it comes to meat and only mutton, beef and chicken are regularly eaten, while other red meat and sea food is expensive.

Eating out can be extremely cheap or extremely expensive. Food being expensive in Lahore means that only street side snacks could be considered cheap such as 'dumchi', 'kulfi', 'golgappey' etc. Apart from snacks lahoris like to eat barbecued and grilled meat and kebabs. Fast food chains have changed the food culture in Lahore competely aspiring hundereds of pizza places and chicken shops to open throughout the city. International suisine is common but expensive, while the best food can be found at the best hotels that offer thai, japanese and continental.

Music and Arts
Traditionally Lahori music would be old ghazals and rags from ancient times. However Lahore's uniqueness lies in its Qawwali music (religious music) and dhammal (dance). In shrines, where the drug culture thrives, many addicts go for a night of dhammal on a dhol (drum) or on a Qawwali song. Mucisians from across the Punjab come to preform for dancing men and women, often till the morning. Lahore's traditional music is centred in and around the old city. Lahore's youth is known for its legendary underground rock scene in the mid and late 1990s, which went on to evolve into Pakistan new pop-rock scene.

Lahore's biggest contributor to the art scene is argubly the National College of Arts, the country's, most prestigious art college, which has produced some of the country's most famour painters, writers, actors and musicians.

There are also several art galleries throughout the city which hold exhibitions regularly.

Lahore is also the centre of Pakistan's puppetry industry. Although not economically viable as a business, the Peerzada family has been arranging puppetry festivels for more than a decade, at one point even brining the biggest festivel in the world to Lahore.

Religion
Like most of Pakistan, almost all of Lahore is muslim. Although the form of islam prevalent in Lahore is not recognised by most of the world muslim community, being influenced heavily by its hindu past, it has become insperable from Lahore's own religious culture of shrines, dance, music and peers (religious scholars and helpers).

Lahore still has islamic colleges providing regirously researched courses to young students throughout the city, although it remais a minority. Religious holidays include the two eids, similar to the rest of the muslim world, however Lahoris also celebrate the birthday of the Prophet Muhammad (PBUM), something unique only to the subcontinent, and also the Urs, celebration of the dead 'saints' of Lahore, which usually involves, drugs and dancing till morning.

A small hindu community still exists in the old parts of the city, however there is a sizeable Christian community, living in and around Lahore. Most are labour workers or maids, however many Christians have bcome successful in their old fields. Christmas, Good friday and Easter are celebrated throughout the city, with many Hotels, restaurants and bakeries taking part.

Language
The main language spoken in Lahore is Punjabi and its variants coming from the workers moving into Lahore from other parts of Lahore. Office and legal documentation is in English, however Punjabi and Urdu are the language of choice for most dealings.

Centres throughout the city teach spoken English as well as French, German, Italian, Persian, Turkish, Chinese and Japanese.