Butchers in business
Butchers in Dhaka city become the most sought after persons on Eid-ul-Azha. It can be difficult to get a professional butcher on Eid day, so some people handle the work themselves or look for non-professionals.
Of course, the demand for professional butchers remains a priority on the occasion, simply because they can do the job incredibly quickly.
Many skilled butchers earn up to Tk 100,000 on Eid day alone. Munna Khan is one of them.
The super butcher
He looks like an average young man until one discovers he can slaughter and prepare a medium-sized cow, singlehandedly, in just 45 minutes.
This 27-year-old butcher, popularly known as Munna Koshai (Butcher Munna), owns a modest butcher shop in the Shanir Akhra bazaar near Jatrabari.
“Yes, in just a matter of 45 minutes or even less, I can prepare a slaughtered cow, from head to tail,” a confident Munna Koshai tells Prothom Alo.
For Munna, who has been in the business for the past 15 years, Eid-ul-Azha is an occasion for which he waits all year round.
“Eid is a special occasion for us. We normally take around 15 to 20 assignments every Eid and pocket more than Tk 150,000 in just two days,” says Munna.
Munna and his team charge according to the price of the animal, Tk 200 per thousand, and a minimum of Tk 600 for a goat. They usually come to an agreement after some bargaining.
Munna leads a five-man team during Eid.
Talking about his teammates Munna says, “They are part-timers and become butchers only on Eid day. They work with me as assistants on Eid days.”
Munna says his team starts gearing up for the occasion well in advance.
“We start preparing for Eid around a month early, starting with basic things like sharpening knives and cleavers as well as drawing up our client list.”
“As we work only two days – Eid day and the day after Eid – we can’t take more than 20 bookings. On average, we dress eight to 10 animals on Eid day, and the rest the following day,” he informs Prothom Alo.
A typical Eid day for Munna and his team starts around 8:00am after Eid prayers.
“We finish chopping a mid-sized cow normally in one hour, and for a large one, it takes 1:15 to 1:30 hours. We work hard at a stretch until Asr prayers. We carry on till Maghrib, but we are already very tired by that time,” says Munna.
About his own Eid celebrations, Munna says, “Our real Eid (celebration) comes two days after Eid day.”
“Sometimes we go on a trip to local tourist spots like Bandarban or Cox’s Bazar. Sometimes we just relax and sit idle, doing nothing. I save up some money for the month as my butcher shop remains closed for around a month after Eid,” he adds.
Munna tells Prothom Alo he wants to become an industrialist one day.
“I want to open a garment or packaging factory. I have been saving money for this for a long time. I know I can’t continue to work this way when I grow older,” he says.
No organisation, however
According to Munna, there is no organisation for butchers in the country.
There is an association for meat shop owners in Kaptan Bazar, Gulistan. “But, it looks after the interests of shop owners, none of whom are actually butchers.”
Munna wants an organisation which can fix rates to dress an animal, for professional butchers as well as for part-timers.
“There are many frauds who introduce themselves as professionals to clients and charge high rates. If there were an organisation, it could fix the charges,” he adds.
Seasonal butchers
Kamal actually sells tea near Dania post office. Though the 25-year-old has a fair income, on Eid day he becomes a butcher. He and his four-man team cut and dress local man Rafiq Ahmed’s sacrificial animal every year.
The three days of ritual sacrifice see hundreds like Kamal changing professions during the festival.
“Many labourers, finding no work during Eid, become seasonal butchers for the time being to make a quick buck. They spend hours after hours to dress an animal but can’t do it properly,” says Munna.
“As they do it only very occasionally, they miss the joints and make a mess of processing the meat,” he adds.
'Guest' butchers, too, arrive in city
Besides seasonal butchers, a number of ‘guest’ butchers throng the capital city seeking work, says Munna.
“As there are thousands of animals slaughtered in Dhaka city, guest butchers team up with part-timers for handsome incomes,” Munna adds.
Munna says he knows two brothers from Narsingdi who come to Dhaka every Eid and turn into butchers for the occasion.
“These part-timers are a welcome sight to those sacrificing on Eid, as professionals who work year round in Dhaka's butcher shops are in high demand and hard to come by,” says public servant Mosharraf Hossain.
Companies offer free butchers
This year, a certain company has offered free butchers for its customers who will buy at least one refrigerator this Eid.
The advertisement styled ‘Koshai Hazir’ has already amazed and amused television viewers.
This is not the first time a company has come up with such an idea.
A few years ago, a soft drink company also offered free butcher service to its customers in their campaign, ‘Kopa Shamsu.’