Rooh Afza : A Traditional Delicacy

Rooh Afza sometimes translates as ‘refresher of the soul’ is a concentrated squash launched by Hakim Mohammed Kabiruddin, an Unani physician in 1906, in Old Delhi, India.

After the partition of India in 1947 and migration of one of his sons to Pakistan, the company Hamdard which manufactured it, was divided. Now Rooh Afza is manufactured in India and Pakistan by the two brothers.The label of Rooh Afza with several colours was prepared by Mirza Noor Ahmad, an artist in 1910. These colourful prints could not be processed in Delhi back then, so it was printed under a special arrangement at the Bolton Press of the Parsees in Bombay.

Rooh Afza not only holds a very significant cultural history of the countries, but also has a lot of healing and health benefits. It is mostly said to be a cooling drink, formulated to deal with heatstroke, dehydration, and loo in the east.

It contains herbs like European white lily, lotus, wine grapes raisins, vegetables like carrot, spinach, mint, flowers like rose, lemon, roots of vetiver and fruits like orange, strawberry, watermelon as ingredients which serve as cooling agents

Apart from its cooling properties, it is also known to improve haemoglobin, cardio vascular health, digestion, weight gain and diarrhoea. Despite these claimed benefits, it is criticised for its high sugar content and additional colouring.

Rooh Afza is also a very popular Ramadan element in India and Pakistan. It Is used in drinks, deserts and as a syrup topping in many dishes including the popular Falooda. It is commonly mixed with water or milk to create a flavoured drink.

The 400-crore brand faced supply constraints in India from November 2018, which resumed in April 2019 as a result of shortage of supply of stock due to lack of some ingredients. Hamdard Pakistan offered to supply its Rooh Afza during the Ramadan period. This Rooh Afza crisis became a topic of discussion on the social media platforms recently, with many discussing the unavailability of Rooh Afza.

Rooh Afza is also produced in Bangladesh and happens to be one of the largest soft drink labels in the east.