Impressions from a visit to the Kashmir Valley - Part 4

'Mini Switzerland' - The Baisaran valley near Pahalgam has been the scene for dozens of Indian films.

The four ponies we were on - all had their own individual character. The one I was riding 'Shera', and the one my wife was on - 'Mastani' - both were Amarnath yatra horses and used to carry heavy riders. Shera was circumspect in crossing little streams, and would take one gingery step first, and then do the crossing. Mastani, however, was a little more adventurous and would leap across, making Lakshmi worry for her balance and safety.

But the real heroes were the ponies bearing my children. They seemed to be extremely well trained, and were enjoying themselves a lot, leading from the front, going away in a different direction, and then responding to their minders' calls, and coming back to join us. We were initially worried for the kids' safety because the minders just let those two horses do their own thing, and stayed with our horses. The children did not seem to worry though, and let the horses do as they please. So, these two horses did a bit of show jumping whenever the chance arose, and the walk became a brisk trot when the track was a bit flat.

Baisaran valley, promoted as mini Switzerland locally, is a breathtaking place of scenic beauty. Green meadows bordered by pine, deodar and willow trees that remind you of many a Bollywood film. One of the minders told me that the film 'Betaab' (Sunny Deol, Amrita Singh) was shot almost entirely in Pahalgam, and broke into a song from that movie. Amazingly, even after 25 years, the house built for the movie was still in tact. As we passed by that house, I remembered a Telugu movie that was probably shot there as well.

The best way to explore Pahagam is on horse back. The horse men say they don't make much money, but the tour operators say they do. When in Kashmir, just listen to the people, and the nature..

We spent almost four hours visiting different places in the nearby valleys including a beautiful secluded place simply called the 'water fall'. I had the usual conversations with the horse men, and a small restaurant owner near Baisaran. Interestingly, though they mentioned financial troubles, their main grouse seems to be that their children don't show interest in studies.

'How much ever we tell them that these valleyes and horses will always be there, but they need to see the wider world and then come back to develop our area - they simply don't care. They just want to play the whole day, gather flowers and tend to the horses, but not touch the books. Is there a secret to make the kids love books?' I didn't have an answer to these questions. I asked them if the kids love playing games or watching movies on the mobile phones. Yes, they do, came the answer. I said may be then we need to teach them through computers and mobile phones. The horse minder Farooq then said something that took me by surprise.

"Sir, that Rajnath Singh ji did say that kids should be given computers. At the school, they even told us India is sending computers for children and adults as well. But may be the computers are still stuck at Srinagar. People don't let anything reach us.'' - The others laughed at this statement. I realized just how well informed these seemingly uneducated people are, about the statements made by ministers and politicians concerning Kashmir. I bet Rajnath Singh's name is virtually unknown down South, for example, among the villagers.

We returned to Pahalgam town very tired but content. Personally, I enjoyed the Pahalgam valleys much better than the Gulmarg and Sonamarg snow points. The children simply did not want to get off the horse backs. And to top it all, we found a restaurant called 'Daana Paani' in Pahalgam serving authentic South Indian food 😋 I ordered Kashmiri Pulav, but the rest gorged on Masala Dosa and piping hot Idli-Sambar.

We had missed the river rafting timings on the way back from Gulmarg. Luckily for us, the season's river rafting had just begun on the Lider river at Pahalgam. As they wouldn't allow children below 12 to do the rafting, it was just Lasya and my self who could join. Needless to say, it was the perfect way to end a day of being one with the nature.

Rafting on the Lider river..safe and exhilarating !

The hotel at Pahalgam was manned by a few young men, all in their early 20s. As we sat down for dinner, a couple of them - let us call them Anwar and Bilal - started a seemingly normal conversation that very soon turned into an outpouring of grief, and a passionate defence of what we call 'militancy or terrorism' in the valley. It started with the topic of the unfortunate little girl who was brutally raped and killed in Jammu. The conversation went on for more than hour. After the first 30 minutes, my kids left the table to go back to the room and grab some TV time. The young men became increasingly open and outspoken about their views. Snippets below:

"Every day without fail, some one or the other gets killed or simply disappears, sir. Most of it is not published in newspapers or shown on TV. We are seeing this since our childhood. Even yesterday, some brothers got killed in cold blood. You (people from India) call them terrorists. But they are just common, local people of Kashmir who want to end the zulm (repressive violence)."

"Take Pahalgam for example. This place needs a vyavastha (facilities and order). There is neither a proper road nor a hospital that can do emergency operations. Leave us locals, what about you tourists? What if you need urgent medical help?"

"Schools and education..ha ha ! There are schools yes, but the teachers don't come regularly, and some of them make the children do chores. We went once to protest, but when the head master complained, the police told us not to harass the teachers."

"You are correct that we should elect the right kind of leaders. We did elect a person Engineer Rashid. You should see his YouTube videos. But they jailed him on trumped up charges, and he had to sell his small house and cattle to come out free. He is the one we trust, as he mixes with us common people. The other MLAs do not even come see us after the elections."

"Engineer Rashid and the new DIG in Srinagar - these are the only two people who mix with the commoners and try to understand our problems." It was good to know at least one police officer has gained the trust of the people.

"We have lost faith in elections, in democracy. Our problems are obvious. We need good roads, schools and hospitals. And jobs of course. And above all, dignity. The police and CRPF treat us like dirt. Our girls have been raped, and men have been beaten up in front of wife and children. Mujhe ronaa aata hai (I feel like weeping).." While the guy who said this choked a bit, the silent young man with looks like a hollywood hero had a few tears streaming down his handsome face.

Not that I was silent through this conversation. I expressed my sympathies at times, and questioned about alternatives and choices. They were articulate, and backed their opinions with first person anecdotes. And they did not show any hatred towards India or its people. Their major grouse seems to be against the 'zulm' and 'lack of development' in their beloved valley, and the Indian State seemed to them the place where the buck stops.

Even when I prodded them about their local leaders and ministers, and the J&K having its own Constitution and a Special Status within the Indian Union, their firm belief was that all the politicians want the status quo to continue, because it is profitable for them, to keep Kashmir in a perpetual cycle of violence.

"Next time, there won't be even 30% voting, sir. The new generation of kids are smarter and more dynamic than us (this being said by young men barely entering their 20s). They will keep at this stone pelting till there is a resolution."

"Azaadi - we don't think about it much. We don't know what it means, really. Definitely not what they have in azad kashmir. The 'zulm' should stop, and we must be treated with respect. That is when we can think of anything else."

"Tourism is the lifeline, sir. As you said, Kashmir could have the most tourist traffic in all the world. But the government does not want that. That is why, there are no proper facilities here. I mean, why can't they build a Tourism University here?"

"We treat tourists like family members and food givers (anna daata). To protect one tourist, even a hundred of us would give our lives. We don't think any true Kashmiri youth will hurl a stone deliberately on a tourist. If we were to do that, by now, imagine how many tourists would have been hurt? But these incidents result in even less number of tourists coming here. And the youth get restless."

This was an illuminating conversation. I told them that even in our state, we have issues with the Centre, as we were bifurcated, and starved of funds for development. But our problems pale in comparison with yours. The only thing that amazes me is that everybody wants peace and prosperity, and there is even agreement that 'development' and more jobs is the answer - but your leaders make you blame the Centre and you lack bharosa (trust) on your leaders. To me, the solution lies in people like you becoming leaders from all constituencies. Kashmir makes a lot of money from saffron, apples, wood, and dry fruit - apart from toursim. You don't need central funds to build infrastructure in fact. And so on..

When we got up from the table finally, Anwar and Bilal seemed to have realized that may be they spoke too much. Bilal apologized to me for taking a lot of my time.

The next day we did a tour of Betaab valley, Aru valley and a few other spots. All very beautiful and we had a great time. But the conversation with Anwar and Bilal kept haunting me.

On our way back to Srinagar, I had to bring up the topic with Parvez bhai. I took care to say that the boys were very nice, polite and respectful with us, but became emotional and were sympathetic to the azadi cause. Parvez was furious that they actually indulged in such talk. " This is just not done. How can they engage in such talk with tourists? Thank God, you are an understanding person from Hyderabad. What if it was some guy from Gujarat or Uttar Pradesh? They would have argued with these boys, and it could have created trouble. I must inform Imtiaz about this - the owner of the hotel lives in Srinagar and has left it under these boys' control. And this is what they do !"

I had to reassure Parvez that it was just fine, and neither my wife nor I felt intimidated. I also told Parvez that I don't want them to lose their jobs or even get a strict warning, because they would then clam up with all the other tourists. "When people think that a dreaded criminal is a shaheed (martyr), they have no business spoiling the tourist trade for those of us with a brain and families to feed' - was Parvez's firm reply.

'Whatever it is, Parvez bhai, such boys do not deserve punishment. They need counseling and mentoring. It is not that they are dumb or can't think. They are better informed, and rational than many city youngsters I have seen. They simply don't have hope."

"There is no chance for Kashmir valley or the J&K state to become normal and peaceful unless article 370 is scrapped. It is Gulab Singh and Hari Singh's treachery that has resulted in this special status, and this violence." - Parvez was quite vehement.

We stopped on the way back at a place full of shops selling 'authentic saffron and dry fruit". Lakshmi and the kids went inside one of the shops. Parvez and I walked a few paces to a shop serving Kahwa tea, and continued our conversation.

"How many people in Kashmir think like you do? 10 %? May be 20?"

" Ha ha ! actually 65-70% think like me. Only 10-15 % think like those Tanzim boys you met in Pahalgam. The remaining are too poor to think anything."

" So why can't this 70% people influence the remaining?"

"Look sir, get this straight from me. Kashmir was and will always remain an atoot hissa of India. The Indian Army will never allow Kashmir to break away. We Kashmiris have seen what has happened to azad Kashmir. Some of it has gone to China, the Pakistani punjabis and jats have settled in the rest of it - the local Kashmiris there are suffering much worse than us here. India has given us roads, electricity, hospitals and what not..some of us Kashmiris are too greedy and they see this separatism as a way to become rich. That's all. And the villagers are gullible."

" But what about the lack of enough schools and hospitals?"

" Who said there are no schools and hospitals? Every village has a small hospital, and every town has a big government hospital. Didn't you see the big hospital opposite the taxi stand in Pahalgam?"

" But Parvez bhai, Srinagar it self does not have any super speciality hospitals. No private hospitals like Appollo for example."

"So what, the government hospitals in Srinagar are good and the doctors do a good job. There are more than 10 big hospitals in Srinagar alone. And schools as well."

"I see banners all over Srinagar advertising MBBS courses in Bangladesh, bhai. Why can't we have more medical colleges here itself ?"

"Sir, we can have medical colleges, private hospitals, malls, and steel factories. But for all that to happen and money to flow here, article 370 needs to go. Conduct a referendum and see how many people will ask for investment and jobs in Kashmir. This cursed article has only given us hell. Hum log malik se majdoor bane (we were our own masters, now we became labour)."

"Parvez bhai, I am happy to hear what you say. I agree that investment would come not just from India, even from abroad. All I say is that the disgruntled youth, at least the ones who spoke to me, came across as genuine. Their grief was not a lie. Some one's got to guide them properly. I don't see that happening. I see people waiting for the militancy to come down without doing anything about it."

"What can we do, sir? We have been voting in the elections. How many burqa clad women do you see on the streets of Srinagar? Women have been brave enough to disobey the diktats of the moral police. They are going to schools, and colleges.We keep telling the tanzim that they can fight the government all they want, but to leave us and the tourists alone. All we need is 10-15 big business houses setting up factories in the outskirts of our towns. People with jobs will not pick up guns."

So, this is what it all boils down to, I thought, as we reached the house boat that evening. Jobs.Dignity.Peace.

The next day was our last day of the trip. We visited the ancient Shankaracharya temple first thing in the morning, followed by a leisurely stroll through the various gardens - Chashmashahi, Nishat, Shalimar. We even visited a carpet factory, and couldn't resist buying one.

The last place to visit was Hazratbal Masjid. As it was a Thursday, the famous relic was not on display. Both the Shankaracharya temple and the Hazratbal Shrine were under heavy security cover. While it was mostly tourists at the Shankaracharya temple, the Mosque seemed frequented by many locals.

School girls having a picnic at Chashmashahi

Hazratbal Masjid..even this place had seen its share of violence.

Chashmashahi garden was taken over by a gaggle of school girls - many buses of them in fact. The innocent laughter, the playful running around, the excited sharing of picnic lunches - this could have been any city in the country. And yet, I couldn't help wonder if these little girls would grow up to live in a peaceful Kashmir or one that would become even more violent.

I did ask Parvez bhai about the Pandits, and he did take me through a tour of downtown Srinagar. He stopped the car at one corner and said: 'See, this entire area is that of Pandits. Most of them have left, but not all houses have been occupied by Muslims. Those three houses there that look old? Those are Pandit houses - their friends, the neighbouring Muslims have been taking care of those houses.

Even now, many Pandits, Sikhs, Rajputs live in Srinagar. The city youth have given up violence, but the university students incite them. How can we explain to educated people?'

Srinagar - a city without liquor stores (there may be 1 or 2 for exclusive use of tourists), no cinema halls, no malls, and no private hospitals or corporate houses. But a bustling city nevertheless, a city simmering from within, full of people who cling to memories and hope for good times to return, or simply waiting for the tourists to swarm again.

In just 6 days, we saw the most beautiful vistas one could imagine, tasted great food, and had enlightening conversations with several genuine individuals. Of course, we spent more money than we expected to, and the kids had more fun than they imagined. And a thousand photographs too.

Would I return again? Yes, I would. Kashmir can weave that spell on you. Imtiaz's niece - the four year old Fatima telling us every evening that she went for tuition, Anwar and Bilal with their plaintive sense of helplessness, Parvez with his incontrovertible logic about the solutions, the priest at the Martand temple counting the death of every militant, Manzoor and the other horse men who can't let go of the horses and the valleys but want their children to go abroad - these are all real people and deserve peace and closure.

If only...

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Thanks to all the readers/friends who have encouraged me with their 'likes' on Facebook and the comments. This travelogue is for you all.

Link to Part 1

Link to Part 2

Link to Part 3