Of Kashmir & Its Kings

I'm weilding the pen after a long hiatus. Thanks to a rejuvenating vacation in the misty mountains of Kashmir!A holiday does wonders to one's mundane & rountine life. A break is needed in a year to relax, de-stress & spend quality time with your family.

I don't have to wax eloquent on Kashmir as we all know that it is one of the most beautiful places on earth. A paradise in a nutshell with it's snow-capped, towering mountains, flowing rivers, assorted Cedar (deodar) & Pine trees, dense vegetation, winding roads, bountiful flora, lovely lakes & it's stunning landscape. I was most excited about seeing & feeling rivers Sindh & Jhelum. What joy it is to experience the things we grew up learning; and both these rivers have always been an integral part of India's geography & history.

Hospitality & kindness of Kashmiri's is another thing that fascinated me. Everyone from the drivers, guides to hotel staff went out of their way to make us feel at home. Hearing it straight from a corporate's mouth - it is excellent customer service & boundaryless behaviour. However, it would be unjust to measure their genuine feelings & emotions towards us in pure coporate terms. So kind was one of our guides, he says " if we don't serve you well, God will deal with us later on".After living in a metro & experiencing an out-an-out corporate life, such words are like honey. A corporate life is seeped only in numbers, struggles, saving one's own backs, being discreet, politics, planning, agenda, targets/goals. God & such kindness go out of the window. I have been talking corporate as I'm it's employee. But this stands true in all walks of life : state government, central government, teaching, education, media and so on. We all know that there is barely any kindness left on earth & we give a damn. So I was smitten completely by their compassion & innocence.

Thinking of innocence makes me want to talk about the more teething issues plaguing Kashmir. This international, unresolved bone of contention stands in stark contrast to it's localites.While there are parties trying to overthrow each other to lay hands on power,there are innocent people who derive their livelihood from tourisim in the valley. And every sort of battle in this place hits their bread & butter immensely. We were one of the very first batches who dared to hit the valley after 4 months of turbulent predicament in Kashmir. The pain of having no livelihood for months evinced in their eyes. Having said that, they have no hope that things will get any better there irrespective of an Omar Abudullah or a Barack Obama who will soon be visiting Kashmir to resolve the issue.

The central goverment cannot let go of CRPF (Central Reserved Police Force ) to guard this sensitive & terrorist prone area. And the locals loathe the latter because they apparently misuse power. One of our own guides have narrated incidents where the CRPF has misused power & persecuted the locals. In our heydays (college life), us girls had the hots for Omar Abdullah as he was the proverbial foreign returned, handsome, smart & enterprising youth ready to govern Kashmir. But in between the lines, there is a twist in the tale. Both the CM's of Kashmir Omar & his father Farooq Abdullah being the rulers, have been away from Kashmir most of the time. Apparently one of the locals was telling me that Omar Abdullah cannot even speak Kashmiri. Can you like beat that? And the moment you take the CM's names, the former wear disgruntled looks on their faces. So when the CM does this to one's state,it does become spoilt.

I couldn't even empathise but felt very bad for them. I'm only hoping, wishing & praying good luck & justice to Kashmir & it's people.