Attar sellers in Coimbatore do brisk business during Ramzan

Discover the world of attar in Coimbatore, where fragrances are sold with passion and expertise.

A gleam of gold amidst the evening bustle at Karumbukkadai instantly grabs our attention. A closer look reveals ornate glass bottles arranged in lit-up rows on a table on the pavement. J Azarudheen’s attar shop is enveloped in the heady fragrance of a medley of perfumes. He stocks around 200 fragrances that he packs in slender bottles as small volumes. The 31-year-old has been in the business of perfumes for almost 15 years, having worked at the popular The Standard Bottles & Perfumes at Five Corner.

“It’s been six years since I started my own shop,” says Azarudheen. His shop is among the most popular ones in Karumbukkadai, and Azarudheen ensures his regulars come back for his fragrances by offering variety. “I source perfumes from Mumbai,” he says, adding that during the day, he supplies to around eight stores in the city, setting up his shop in the evenings.

Attar, Azarudheen explains, is simply a fragrant essential oil. “We sell it in its purest form, without any additives such as alcohol,” he explains. “Perfume sprays may last only a few hours, but attar’s fragrance will last the whole day.” Azarudheen has a lot of regular customers who swear by his fragrances. He also has a knack for picking the best fragrance that suits a customer’s personality. His favourite kind? “I use something very strong,” he laughs. “Being surrounded by fragrances all day, my body does not take on anything mild.”

The quaint insides of the historic Athar Jamaath Masjid is a stark contrast to the bustle of Oppanakara Street it is located in. K Ibrahim is seated at the entrance, a little beyond the gate in front of his collection of attar, watches, and books. The 81-year-old has been selling attar at the mosque for 40 years.

He has around 20 fragrances that include musk, jasmine, chocolate, marigold, and sandal. “I make trips to Chennai once in three months to buy attar,” says Ibrahim, adding that he gets them from a regular supplier at Mannadi. While he does brisk business during Ramzan, Ibrahim says that shoppers on Oppanakara Street stop by to buy from him through the year. “Deepavali and Christmas are also good seasons for me,” he explains.

Ibrahim says that a few decades ago, men would carry a wooden box lined with bottles of attar, selling it door-to-door. “They would know which customer preferred which fragrance, and would visit them regularly even before they ran out of attar,” he remembers. His favourite kind is jasmine attar, and there hasn’t been a day without him dabbing a little on himself. His wife Dunisha though, does not like perfumes. “She uses them only during he nombi,” he says. “That too very little.”

K H Sahabdeen has been walking door-to-door with his precious cargo of clothes and attar for 30 years now. He sells on the move, but during Ramzan, sets up a shop near the Kottai Thareekathul Islam Shafia Jamath Mosque. Among his limited fragrances, Jannatul Firdaus stands out, which Sahabdeen says is for special occasions. He has it in a gold-trimmed bottle that he still has not taken out of its box. “I have the same fragrance for ₹100 and ₹300 as well; the price changes depending on the quality and the brand,” he explains.