Kids get traditional for Laylat Al Qadr

(23 Jun 2017) LEADIN:
Children in Morocco celebrate a special day during Ramadan with an evening of dress-up and music.
STORYLINE:
Professional musicians, traditional ceremony chair, colourful dresses, make up - it could be a wedding but this is actually a special celebration for children.
The families of these youngsters are celebrating an important night during the holy month of Ramadan - Laylat al-Qadr (Night of Destiny).
Laylat al-Qadr is celebrated each year between the 26th and 27th day of Ramadan and is a prelude to Eid Al Fitr.
But for some of these children, it is also the first time that they have fasted.
This evening, several families have come to a photo studio in Rabat, Morocco, where a crowd gathers to watch the festivities.
After their first iftar, the children are dressed up, some by a neggafte - the women traditionally responsible for the embellishment of brides.
Meryem Debar is one of these women and offers her services to make the children feel particularly special.
"We are trying to make them feel happy. As you can see the ambience is special, there is music and children are placed in the traditional chair, the Ammaria. So we are here to get them ready and make up them to make them even more beautiful than they are."
This evening, a 9 year-old girl is getting ready for the show and is full of excitement.
"Today I'm celebrating this special day for the first time. There are lots of traditional dresses and I picked the blue one, I'm really happy and I really like the make up I have," says Firdaws Berhili.
While it is a special night for the families, it is also a lucrative night for photo studios.
Labo Ibrahim is one of the most famous photo studios and has existed since 1980.
Ayoub Ait Samar, son of the founder and now the manager, says they are now offering more choice for their customers.
"Instead of having just pictures, or a book full of pictures we are now offering them a video clip. It's kind of the same as there is for weddings, and fees include everything from the dressing to the traditional chair ceremony. This is the kind of new things we developed."
Once preparations are finished, the girls are ready for their moment in the spotlight.
Tonight, Firdaws is sharing the chair with her cousin.
To her aunt, Qamar Chayeq the festivities are deserved - "as a reward, we bring them here and I think it gives them a motivation to fast again next year and the year after. It's an evening of celebration for them that we share all together."
And Firdaws is delighted that she was able to make it through her first fast.
"When I woke up this morning my mother suggested I should fast. And if I managed it she would bring me here to take pictures and be dressed nicely, doing make up etc. I accepted it and I fasted all day. It was hard for me but I was patient and I did not eat anything today until iftar."
For parents like Hassan, the celebrations are a great chance for the family to get together.
"That to me is the essence of Laylat Al Qadr."
And for Mehdi it is all about keeping traditions alive.
"As our parents did in the past, we are keeping this tradition of taking our children and making them happy. We are doing for our children exactly what our parents did for us. The most important thing is to keep the traditions known to all Moroccans."
However, not all parents can afford a photo shoot and make-up artists for their children.
Earlier in the day, in a hall belonging to an NGO, a local community group in the Sidi Fateh neighbourhood put on a more modest celebration.
The girls are given henna tattoos and new hairstyles, while a clown entertains the crowd.
Organiser Zoubida Al Moutawakil is also very keen to keep the old Moroccan traditions alive.


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