The dolo, also called “tchapalo”, is generally drunk in the cabarets found in the markets. But nowadays we find houses that have been transformed into tchapalo drome “to serve as places of manufacture and consumption of dolo”. Thus, millet beer is now drunk in concessions in the town of Sya. Report !
Made from sorghum, dolo tastes quite sour. Its manufacture is a long process and requires a good knowledge of this drink to obtain a quality product. It is consumed in cabarets, places where friends meet, lively discussions and good times shared. Places that can be found everywhere in the city of Bobo, in our neighborhoods and in the middle of concessions. The women who make the dolo are dolotières. It is a job reserved exclusively for women.
We were interested in a tchapalo drome in Accart-ville in sector 9 of Bobo on July 25, 2023. For Mariame Delphine Sanou who says she was born and raised in the manufacture of dolo, “Thanks to this activity I manage to have my daily subsistence, because I don’t ask anyone for money. Also, I can pay for my children’s schooling, clothe them and feed them. I manage to buy what I want, for example loincloths, shoes. In any case, I manage to provide for the needs of the family”, she confides to us, speaking of the fallout from this activity.
Like any income-generating activity, the innkeeper tells us about the difficulties of this profession. “The price of a bag of millet has increased a lot. It’s expensive now. There is also the wood for the preparation of the dolo which one cannot buy. Often, there are customers who come to drink on credit and some do not even pay their credit”, she regrets.
Music as a motivator
Who speaks of cabaret obviously speaks of animation. Animation plays an important role in this environment. It is done through the music which is one of the motivating elements thus keeping the clientele in suspense. Music softens morals, they say. Consumers talk about everything without taboo between musical entertainment and calabash of dolo. We would therefore say that the atmosphere rhymes with drinking the dolo, because it facilitates its consumption. Except that this animation is done in the middle of the concessions, because the cabaret itself is established in the district. As a result, the neighborhood finds itself in the middle of this noise. This can disturb the tranquility of the neighborhood at times.
To our question on the sound system of the cabaret, Alidou Traoré, a resident of the place underlines, “this cabaret plays its music in moderation. It doesn’t bother us too much, it’s only the smell of the dolo that often tires us. As soon as it is 10 p.m., he stops the music to allow us to rest. In any case, we have no problem with the manager of the cabaret”. For the dolotière Mariame Delphine Sanou, “Since it’s in the middle of the concessions, we play music with our neighbors in mind. Because there may be sick people nearby who want to rest. We don’t turn up the volume. And from 10 p.m. we stop playing the music”.
Souleymane Sanou is a loyal client of the cabaret. “I prefer dolo because it is a drink that is produced naturally, unlike other industrial drinks. Also, it saves me constipation problems. But, any excessive consumption can cause health problems. For this, I invite consumers to moderation in their consumption..
Karim LEMA/Trainee
