HYDERABAD: We’ve heard of people donating money, distributing essentials and cooking for the needy during this pandemic. But here’s a breadman in Tolichowki who is helping the needy with his out-of-the-box initiative.
Mohammed Iqbal, who runs Abdullah Naan Mahal, does not want anyone to go hungry. So, he came up with Neki ki Roti (Bread of Goodness). Every morning, he places a basket outside his eatery for people to buy naan rotis and put them in it. “Anyone, rich or poor, can pick up the rotis from this basket. No one should go hungry,” he says.
Iqbal himself places at least 20 rotis a day in the basket. “By doing this, we are not helping people but God. It is God who is making us do this,” he believes. “Even those, who are not my regular customers, are now buying Neki ki Rotis to help the poor.”
Like many others, Iqbal too is going through hard times amid the pandemic-imposed lockdown. “As soon as I get back to being financially stable, I will start making Nahari Sherwa. The poor can have the rotis with it,” he says, adding that, “Nobody likes dry bread. Not even me. But what can we do in these difficult times?”
In 2020, Abdullah Naan Mahal used to serve Nahari Sherwa too, but had to stop because of Covid-19 and consecutive lockdown. However, Iqbal is hopeful that this difficult phase passes and the world becomes a better place again. He wants to continue his initiative for as long as he can. “People ride down to my shop to take these free rotis. We never question them because we do not know what they are going through,” he says.
That’s very thoughtful of him. Long live Neki ki Roti.