Jalal Shirzad grew up watching his home city of Mazar-e Sharif host the largest celebration of Nowruz, the Persian New Year, in Afghanistan every year, with thousands of people coming from all over the country to enjoy several days of festivities.
The celebrations would be kicked off by an ancient flag-hoisting ceremony at a religious shrine famous for its blue tiles, followed by food fairs, music and dance parties, traditional sports games, and family picnics.
But under the Taliban’s rule, Nowruz has become just another day for many Afghans, says Shirzad, a 30-year-old author from Mazar-e Sharif, the capital of the northern Balkh region.
Shirzad and several other Afghans who spoke to RFE/RL said that amid the crippling poverty and many restrictions imposed by the Taliban they have no plans to celebrate Nowruz, which falls on March 20 this year.
“There is no difference between Nowruz and any other ordinary day anymore,” Shirzad said. “People have to go to work as usual on Nowruz. It’s not even a public holiday anymore.”
The hardline Taliban group, which returned to power in Kabul in August 2021, has scrapped Nowruz as a public holiday but said people were free to celebrate it.
Preparations for the flag hosting ceremony in Mazar-e Sharif. March 21, 2023.
Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid told RFE/RL at the time that Nowruz will not be celebrated in Afghanistan officially with state-organized events, but people “will not be prevented” from marking it privately.
During its previous stint in power in the 1990s, the Taliban had banned Nowruz as a pagan holiday.
Nowruz, which marks the beginning of spring and the first day of the Persian New Year, has been celebrated in the region for more than 3,000 years.
‘The Fun Has Gone Since Taliban Came’
Many Afghans, especially women, say despite being “free to celebrate” Nowruz, many bans and restrictions imposed by the Taliban-led government don’t allow them to mark their new year in a meaningful way.
Taliban authorities have outlawed music and banned women from going to public parks and leisure facilities. Women, who must follow a strict dress code, should not even be heard in public, according to a Taliban law unveiled late last year.
Nowruz celebrations in Bamyan Province. March 2021.
Mursal, a resident of the capital, Kabul, who gave only her first name for security reasons, said Nowruz, the once-popular event, has lost its meaning for Afghans under Taliban rule. Mursal said she has no choice but to ignore Nowruz.
“I have not celebrated Nowruz since the Taliban took power. We used to have a picnic, we used to go out with family and friends, now women aren’t allowed to do any of that. All the fun and enthusiasm of Nowruz has disappeared under the Taliban,” Mursal told RFE/RL.
‘Real Nowruz Is Distant Memory In Afghanistan’
Preparations for Nowruz traditionally started several days before the new year, with several families coming together to prepare sumanak, a dish made from germinated wheat.
Households also prepared haft mewa, a salad made from seven different dried fruits served in their own syrup.
Muhammad Tahir, a Kabul resident says that most Afghans struggle to buy most basic foods, let alone ingredients for Nowruz snacks and specialties.
“Real Nowruz is a distant memory now. We used to buy new clothes, we used to go fruit shopping, we used to have fun. That’s all gone,” Muhammad said.