Will social iftar make a comeback?

With Ramadhan beginning, bachelors are in the high hopes that social iftars, which used to be the norm of the past, would return.

There used to be mass Iftar gatherings every nook and corner of the cities and remote areas before the Covid-19 in 2020 and these feasts used to be a great relief to those who live without their families in Oman.

But, such gatherings took a back seat during the lock downs owing to social distancing and the new norm was followed even after the pandemic. Major social Iftar gatherings including in many of the mosques, except some Iftar camps remained suspended up until last year.

"We sincerely hope that such Iftar gatherings will come back and help us break our fast in a better way," said one of the bachelors who works on odd timings said.

"The only hope till last had been the Iftars organised by corporates from time to time and we hope these Iftar would continue which is a great relief for many like us," another youngster admitted.

Social iftars, also known as mass iftars, have been the rythm of Iftar scenario and so did the iftar kits and sumptuous meals which are distributed close to the time of breaking fast.

These community iftars, free food and refreshments aimed to help a believer break his or her fast and to bolden the social fabric of the people who took part, had been received overwhelmingly.

"I'm a bachelor living in Wattayah and I am confident that there would be social iftars this year. I fast every day and the tents are great relief for me and friends," Hussain, an expatriate who used to break his fast at a tent sponsored by a corporate, said.

"I am a forced bachelor and my family is away from Muscat for familial reasons. For people like me, this (the tent in Ruwi) is a great boon as we don't have to sweat in the kitchen making iftar meals," Mohamemd Iqbal living in the country for the past 35 years, told the Observer.