It is summer and holidays are here! What do I do? Should I read a book? Or help mummy to cook? Or should I chase the butterflies That circle round the flowering nook? I think and think and think Till mummy calls out, “Radha, come here quick! “Pack your bags. It is time to visit […]
Search results for stories from Kashmir
Stories from Kashmir: The Laughing Child
Simi Chachi made the best lotus root saag, hakh, and rajmah in Srinagar. Her kahwa was redolent with cardamom and rich with thin almond slivers. She was popular all over Kashmir – not just for her saag or kahwa. she was most famous for her unique and rare hand-woven carpets. She weaved the most exquisite […]
Stories From Kashmir-Valley Of Gold
Bahadur looked up as Abdullah patted his silky mane, They walked side by side as he held his reins. Bahadur’s body looked weak and eyes looked old As they stood and watched the Valley of Gold.. Where the sun sprinkles beams on shiny white snow Where the pine trees are arranged neatly in rows […]
Stories from Kashmir: Pony Tales
Galloping away on a wish That the family has no hungry day And the night passes by easily Like the river. The hilly terrains and breathtakingly beautiful places beckon tourists from across the world. The tourists, beckon horses and ponies. And the horses and ponies are the source of income for many. Yes, ponies feed […]
Stories from Kashmir: Alive and Floating
Imagine this. You are floating. Like a dreamy cloud in the starry sky. Like a leaf in a cool pool. Like almond slivers on a hot cup of kahwa. Like a lingering kiss on a cheek. You are still, but it is a moving experience. Staying in a houseboat feels just like that. It’s one […]
Stories from Kashmir: Weeping Willows
“So what did you get from Kashmir? Pashmeena shawls, saffron, carpets, walnut wood articles?” asked an inquisitive neighbor. “Er…cricket bats,” I replied. She responded with a huge pause. And then I put the receiver away from my ears. “Cricket bats! Who on earth gets cricket bats from Kashmir? Why on earth will one get a […]
Stories from Kashmir: An Ode
How does one write about… Beauty and its many lovers, like an infatuation. Like a shrine, its devotees. Like an ancestral home that belongs to many, yet none. How does one write about… Snow, melting our senses as we gaze at her humility, her presence as ephemeral as laughter. Her impeccably white robe spreading like […]
Thank You Kashmir!
“Agar Firdaus bar rōy-e zamin ast, hamin ast-o hamin ast-o hamin ast.” If there is paradise on earth, it is here, it is here, it is here.That’s what Persian poet Amir Khusrau, said of Kashmir in 13th Century.Fast-forward to now and this is what I heard from friends and acquaintances: “There’s a constant sense of […]
Book Review: The Golden Legend
The master story-teller is back, weaving the usual magic with his words, writing a familiar yet brand-new tale of love in the times of bigotry and xenophobia.“ I wake up every day approaching life’s problems through fiction,“ says Nadeem Aslam. Which explains the prose that soars even as it touches upon, examines, parses all the conflict life […]
India Art Fair 2017: Small And Impactful
Less is more. The phrase aptly sums up India Art Fair that took off in the capital yesterday. The fair, in its ninth edition, has cut out the big and the bizarre to focus on local flavors – particularly from the South Asian region – and socio-political issues that surround us. Smaller and compact, the […]
Why There Can Be No Justice For Jisha
Remember the Dalit girl being dragged through the streets of Muktsar? And Pushpa and Murti, the Dalit teenaged girls in Badaun in 2014 whose rape and hanging was referred to by the shocked Western media as India’s Mango tree case? A case that was dismissed by CBI director Ranjit Sinha with this statement, “Our probe […]
Srinagar: Tips For Independent Travellers
The ethereal kashmir has been a bone of contention between two very unhappy neighbours. But its lush green meadows, snow filled valleys, warm kangris, hospitable people and delicious cuisine keep drawing travellers despite the tension. I did this trip independently with a friend without a tour package, guide or private taxi. Here are some useful […]