Meethi Eid By Asia Barkat Ali

About this novel

Meethi Eid (Urdu: میٹھی عید) by Asia Barkat Ali is a warm, light-hearted family novel set in a big joint household during Ramzan and Eid. It opens on the evening the whole family gathers in the lounge, drinking tea and watching TV, waiting to hear whether the Ramzan moon has been sighted.

Jibran comes in from his room, drops onto the velvet carpet and tells someone to put the news on: the Ruet-e-Hilal Committee hasn’t announced yet whether the first roza is tomorrow. Taimoor switches channels at once. On the sofas sit the elders, Abdul Rehman Agha, Akhtar Agha, Altaf, Bilqees and Farzana, while the younger cousins crowd the carpet: Saba, Urooj, Dua and Kinza, and Taimoor, Abbas, Bilaj, Ahad and Jibran.

ایک بڑا گھر، بہت سے کزنز، اور رمضان کی رونق۔

The writer walks us through the house too. Stairs climb from the middle of the lounge, there are flowers on the balconies, and every cousin has a room: Inaya’s comes first on the first floor, next to Dua’s and Saba’s, with Urooj and Kinza opposite, while the boys share the second floor. When the moon is finally announced, everyone is thrilled, and Mehreen hurries in from the kitchen. Bilqees, Farzana and Mehreen have spent a week cleaning the house and buying Ramzan groceries, and kebabs, samosas and rolls for sehri and iftar are already waiting in the freezer, just as they are every year.

It’s a cosy, festive read full of family chatter, cousin banter and the special feel of Ramzan in a big Pakistani home. The title, “sweet Eid”, suggests the month ends with something worth celebrating. It’s perfect to read during Ramzan or when you miss family gatherings.

You can read Meethi Eid online here or download the complete PDF for free. For another Ramzan and Eid story, read Meri Eid Tum Sajan by Ana Ilyas, or browse our Cousin Romance novels.