The Qissa Khwani or Kissa Khwani Bazaar (, ; ''"Story-tellers market'') is a
bazaar
A bazaar or souk is a marketplace consisting of multiple small Market stall, stalls or shops, especially in the Middle East, the Balkans, Central Asia, North Africa and South Asia. They are traditionally located in vaulted or covered streets th ...
in
Peshawar
Peshawar is the capital and List of cities in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa by population, largest city of the Administrative units of Pakistan, Pakistani province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. It is the sixth most populous city of Pakistan, with a district p ...
, the capital of the
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (; ; , ; abbr. KP or KPK), formerly known as the North West Frontier Province (NWFP), is a Administrative units of Pakistan, province of Pakistan. Located in the Northern Pakistan, northwestern region of the country, Khyber ...
province of
Pakistan
Pakistan, officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of over 241.5 million, having the Islam by country# ...
.
Background
The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (then
North-West Frontier Province) province
Gazetteer
A gazetteer is a geographical dictionary or wikt:directory, directory used in conjunction with a map or atlas.Aurousseau, 61. It typically contains information concerning the geographical makeup, social statistics and physical features of a co ...
, traveller
Lowell Thomas
Lowell Jackson Thomas (April 6, 1892 – August 29, 1981) was an American writer, Television presenter, broadcaster, and documentary filmmaker. He authored more than fifty non-fiction books, mostly travel narratives and popular biographies of ex ...
and Peshawar's British commissioner
Herbert Edwardes called it "the
Piccadilly
Piccadilly () is a road in the City of Westminster, London, England, to the south of Mayfair, between Hyde Park Corner in the west and Piccadilly Circus in the east. It is part of the A4 road (England), A4 road that connects central London to ...
of
Central Asia
Central Asia is a region of Asia consisting of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan. The countries as a group are also colloquially referred to as the "-stans" as all have names ending with the Persian language, Pers ...
".
History
On 23 April 1930,
British Indian Army
The Indian Army was the force of British Raj, British India, until Indian Independence Act 1947, national independence in 1947. Formed in 1895 by uniting the three Presidency armies, it was responsible for the defence of both British India and ...
troops
opened fire on a crowd of
anti-colonial protestors at the Qissa Khwani Bazaar, killing nearly 400 people. The
colonial authorities ultimately acknowledged that the British Indian Army had killed 179 people in the massacre, which triggered protests across India and catapulted the newly formed ''
Khudai Khidmatgar'' movement into prominence.
In 2010, 25 people were killed in
a bomb attack at a protest against electricity shortages.
The
market was again targeted by militants in 2013, who used a 220 kg bomb to carry out an attack that killed over 40 people, and damaged a nearby
mosque
A mosque ( ), also called a masjid ( ), is a place of worship for Muslims. The term usually refers to a covered building, but can be any place where Salah, Islamic prayers are performed; such as an outdoor courtyard.
Originally, mosques were si ...
as well as set fire to several historic wooden buildings.
On 4 March 2022, 63 people
were killed and 196 others wounded in a
suicide attack
A suicide attack (also known by a wide variety of other names, see below) is a deliberate attack in which the perpetrators knowingly sacrifice their own lives as part of the attack. These attacks are a form of murder–suicide that is ofte ...
at a mosque during
Jumma prayer.
Kissa Khwani Bazaar is famous for Chai and Qehwa houses, and also because several famous Indian movie actors have origins and family ties in the region. Indian film actor
Dilip Kumar
Dilip Kumar (born Muhammad Yusuf Khan; 11 December 1922 – 7 July 2021) was an Indian actor and film producer, who worked in Hindi cinema. Credited with pioneering method acting in cinema, he dominated Hindi cinema from the 1950s throughout t ...
was born in Qissa Khwani Bazaar on or about 11 December 1922. He belonged to Awan family. Actor
Raj Kapoor
Raj Kapoor (; born as Shrishti Nath Kapoor; 14 December 1924 2 June 1988; also known as Ranbir Raj Kapoor) was an Indian actor, film director and producer, who worked in Hindi cinema. He is considered to be one of the greatest and most influen ...
and his uncle, actor
Trilok Kapoor
Trilok Kapoor (11 February 1912 23 September 1988) was an Indian actor and a member of the Kapoor family who worked in Bollywood films. He was the younger brother of actor Prithviraj Kapoor.
Early and personal life
Born in the Kapoor Haveli i ...
were also born in the area. Actor
Shah Rukh Khan
Shah Rukh Khan (; born 2 November 1965), also known by the initialism SRK, is an Indian actor and film producer who works in Hindi cinema. Referred to in the media as the "Padishah, Baadshah of Bollywood" and "King Khan", he has Shah Rukh K ...
's family still lives in the area.
Gallery
File:Qissa_Khwani_Bazaar,_Peshawar,_Pakistan_-_panoramio_-_franek2_(2).jpg
File:Qissa_Khwani_Bazaar,_Peshawar,_Pakistan_-_panoramio_-_franek2.jpg
File:Peshawarbazaar.jpg
File:Afghan Building, Peshawar.JPG, Afghan Building
File:Old Qissa Khwani2.jpg
File:Old Qissa Khwani233.jpg, Some older buildings have been renovated and altered
Image:BritishIndianArmysoldiers.jpg, British Indian Army soldiers in Peshawar during the 1930 massacre
Notable people
*
Surinder Kapoor, father of actors/producers
Anil,
Boney, and
Sanjay Kapoor
* The
Kapoor family of
Bollywood
Hindi cinema, popularly known as Bollywood and formerly as Bombay cinema, is primarily produced in Mumbai. The popular term Bollywood is a portmanteau of "Bombay" (former name of Mumbai) and "Cinema of the United States, Hollywood". The in ...
has their roots here after their ancestors left
Samundri and settled here before permanently migrating to
Mumbai
Mumbai ( ; ), also known as Bombay ( ; its official name until 1995), is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra. Mumbai is the financial capital and the most populous city proper of India with an estimated population of 12 ...
*
Dilip Kumar
Dilip Kumar (born Muhammad Yusuf Khan; 11 December 1922 – 7 July 2021) was an Indian actor and film producer, who worked in Hindi cinema. Credited with pioneering method acting in cinema, he dominated Hindi cinema from the 1950s throughout t ...
*
Nasir Khan
See also
*
Market (place)
A marketplace, market place, or just market, is a location where people regularly gather for the purchase and sale of provisions, livestock, and other goods. In different parts of the world, a marketplace may be described as a ''souk'' (from ...
*
Retail
Retail is the sale of goods and services to consumers, in contrast to wholesaling, which is the sale to business or institutional customers. A retailer purchases goods in large quantities from manufacturers, directly or through a wholes ...
*
Souq
References
Economy of Peshawar
Shopping malls in Pakistan
Tourist attractions in Peshawar
Bazaars in Peshawar
{{Peshawar-stub