Kashmir in Sketches: An Artist Draws New Friends in the Valley

A young artist believes that after her visit to Kashmir, its people are no longer a nameless mass.

A graphic designer recently visited the Valley and captured her experience through sketches. (Photo Courtesy: Dhwani Shah [L, Upper R], Chetan Prasad [Bottom R])

Kashmir has been simmering in the aftermath of the Burhan Wani death, and the country has yet again found itself incapable of containing the violence or lessening the sufferings of the Kashmiris. At a time when the arm chair intellectuals are discussing all that makes Kashmir so controversial, an artist has found beauty and friendships in her recent trip to the Valley.

Dhwani Shah, a National Institute of Design graduate and a graphic designer by profession went to Kashmir in June and captured her experiences through sketches.

People returning home after prayers at Hazratbal on Jumatulvida. (Photo Courtesy: Dhwani Shah)

Recently, she shared the artworks on her Facebook profile and found overwhelming appreciation from all quarters. This is what she wrote along with the sketches:

Here are some of her sketches (a few with paragraphs explaining them):

(Photo Courtesy: Dhwani Shah)

Chai Jaai, Srinagar, 27 June 2016 ...I was only hoping for a comfortable corner table with a plug point, and the beautiful interiors that I found myself in were totally unexpected. The cafe included an exhibit of old Kashmiri photographs and the walls were filled with an intricately detailed floral pattern that had been hand painted by a local artist. I was glad to find that he had been given due credit and acknowledgement in the space. I had the grandest and tastiest cup of Kahwa served in an exquisite looking samovar – hot golden looking chai with badam, kesar, elaichi and gulkand. The friendly and soft spoken waiter also recommended a few other teas to try over my next few visits, but that is not what I want to talk about...

(Photo Courtesy: Dhwani Shah)

Shah i Hamdaan mosque ...As I stood sketching this intricate window at the Shah i Hamdaan mosque, the priest came up to chat with me. Why are you alone in this part of the city, he asked. Oh no, not another member of the moral police, I thought in my head... But, I was wrong, and glad to be, because Muzaffar chacha turned out to be the friendliest person I ever met. He not only gave me a quick tour of all the popular sites in the old city on his scooter, he also welcomed me into his home, talked about his family, showed me his wife’s vegetable garden and fed me despite fasting himself. He then got me into a bus to get back to my home stay and also insisted on paying the bus fare, all the time asking me to come back some day with my family. One of those serendipitous happenstances that teaches you that, sometimes, it is okay to trust a total stranger.

Lidderwat Base Camp. (Photo Courtesy: Dhwani Shah)

(Photo Courtesy: Dhwani Shah)

Hazratbal, Srinagar, July 1, 2016 ...I was disappointed to find the University of Kashmir empty. I wanted to interact and make friends with a few students there, but no one was around because it was Jumatulvida, the last Friday of Ramzan. So then, I decided to revisit Hazratbal shrine nearby. In the difference of just one week, the gullies leading to the mosque had undergone a total transformation. It was now full of makeshift stalls selling a hundred things, people in buses pouring in hundreds and huge tents put up in the lawns to provide shade to the praying masses. I walked around for a while clicking photographs, amazed at the thousands of people kneeling, praying, moving in an almost perfect synchronisation...

Shah, a 29-year-old Mumbaikar, who always carries a notebook to doodle and scribble while travelling, calls her understanding of Kashmir very incomplete to make any meaningful arguments but vouches for the heartwarming kindness and hospitality of the locals.

A food stall on the way to Hazratbal on Jumatulvida. (Photo Courtesy: Dhwani Shah)

“How they continue living in such unfair conditions and still be so compassionate is really overwhelming. They are people like you and me, with hobbies, talents, ambitions, bucket lists. Once you talk to them, they cease being a nameless mass. I really hope more people can visit the place and then form opinions, instead of making them from their living rooms watching TV.”

(Runa Mukherjee Parikh has written on women, culture, social issues, education and animals, with The Times of India, India Today and IBN Live. When not hounding for stories, she can be found petting dogs, watching sitcoms or travelling. A big believer in ‘animals come before humans’, she is currently struggling to make sense of her Bengali-Gujarati lifestyle in Ahmedabad.)