Saturday, November 23News and updates from Kashmir

CULTURE

Ram Nath Tickoo- End of a Legacy, Muslims Help Perform the Last Rites of Renowned Pandit in Shopian

Ram Nath Tickoo- End of a Legacy, Muslims Help Perform the Last Rites of Renowned Pandit in Shopian

CULTURE
Mir Irfan When Kashmiri Pandits left the Kashmir valley in the early 90, a very few chose to stay behind, including five families in Zainapora area of Shopian in South Kashmir, one of these families headed by Kanth Ram Tickoo. A Teacher by profession, Ram Nath Tickoo was a corporate employee and was closely threaded to his Kashmiri roots. "Despite many others, friends leaving, he choose to stay back home and lived here happily for the rest of his life till he passed away late on Wednesday night," one of his family member today. ALSO READ: Muslims Come Together to Perform Last Rites of Hindu Woman in Bandipora He is remembered by locals as someone who was the only surviving link between the Golden days of Kashmir's long cherished concept of  communal harmony and diversity. "he was s...
Kashmiri Actor And Comedian Shadi Lal Koul Passes Away

Kashmiri Actor And Comedian Shadi Lal Koul Passes Away

CULTURE, REGIONAL
Famous veteran actor and comedian, Shadi Lal Koul has passed away.  He was famous in Kashmir as Shamas Ud Din Altamash, a character he played in the serial Shabrang. His son, Vijay koul, confirming his death said, “he breathed his last today morning at 2:45 AM. We held his hands and walked with him to the end”. Shadi Lal Koul was from chota Bazar area of downtown, Srinagar. He has acted in many serials of DD Kashir. Aziz Hajini, convener Northern Reginal Board at Sahitya Akademi New Delhi, has expressed grief over Shadi Lal’s death stating,“ His death has left a void in the performing arts”. Shadi Lal Koul was considered the King of Kashmiri comedy.
Kashmiri Couple in America Buy 97 Year Old Church, Turn it Into ‘Kashmir Museum’

Kashmiri Couple in America Buy 97 Year Old Church, Turn it Into ‘Kashmir Museum’

CULTURE
A Kashmiri couple, Dr Khurshid and Dr Lubna Guru are planning to launch a Kashmir museum in the United States. The couple intends to share their treasured collection of books and art with the millions of annual visitors to Niagara Falls. The duo aims to highlight the diversity and peaceful traditions of Kashmir. Kurshid, a surgeon at Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center and Lubna, adolescent and pediatric doctor in Lockport, have spent years collecting over 1,500 books, paintings, prints and other artefacts related to Kashmir, reported the BuffaloNews. The Kashmiri couple is buying a vacant 97-year-old stone church, located in Niagara Falls, which they plan to convert into their new museum- the Center for Kashmir. They are also purchasing two houses to provide residential spac...
Muslims Come Together to Perform Last Rites of Hindu Woman in Bandipora

Muslims Come Together to Perform Last Rites of Hindu Woman in Bandipora

CULTURE
In a heartwarming gesture, Muslims in a village in north Kashmir district of Bandipora performed the last rites of a Kashmiri Pandit woman amid lockdown to curtail spread of COVID-19. According to details, as soon as the news of the death of 75-year-old Rani Bhatt spread at Kalosa in Bandipora, members of Muslim community came together to help in performing his last rites. Many people visited the home of the deceased to express condolences with the family amid lockdown. Official sources said that the 75-year-old died at her residence at Kalosa on Wednesday night. “The elderly woman died of natural causes,” they said, adding the deceased was cremated as per Hindu rituals by her family members and Muslim neighbours on Thursday. The family of the woman was among many Kashmiri Pand...
‘Selling Ancestral Property to Pay Debts’- In Times of Lockdowns, Kashmir’s Wazwan Fears Extinction

‘Selling Ancestral Property to Pay Debts’- In Times of Lockdowns, Kashmir’s Wazwan Fears Extinction

CULTURE
Samreen Tak Kashmir - 'paradise on earth’ is aptly known for its beauty all over the world. Kashmir not only attracts people from different corners of the world for its scenic beauty and majestic mountains but also for its unique Kashmiri cuisine. Kashmiri cuisine in its entirety is the magic of handmade spices and its authentic aroma attracts a person sitting miles away. Kashmiri cuisine known as Wazwan is derived from two words, ‘Waze’ means a cook, and ‘Wan’ means a place where the cook cooks varieties of delicious, mouth-watering dishes. The number of dishes goes from 7 to 36 dishes made of mutton, chicken and Kashmiri dry fruits. Wazwan is supposed to be made on special occasions like weddings, ceremonies and other gatherings. The head chef Waza is assist...
Police Official in Shopian Takes Pragnent Lady to Hospital in his Own Car

Police Official in Shopian Takes Pragnent Lady to Hospital in his Own Car

CULTURE
Sheikh Nadeem Despite the unavoidable circumstances, the Jammu Kashmir Police is taking measures at every possible level to help people amid the pandemic in the Kashmir valley. A testimony to this fact was seen on the ground when Station House Officer Shopian Inspector Javed Ahmed patrolling the main square in South Kashmir's Shopian district found a pregnant woman walking with her siblings without any transportation, the official (inspector) noticed them, and asked them to stop, from a distance. He then, as per eyewitnesses, put them in his own private vehicle and took them to the hospital. The Station House Officer Shopian Javed Ahmed care took of the lady inside the hospital too and later sent her to the Kathuhalan area in Shopian's Keller, agains, in his own vehicle, Kathku...
Romance in the Hills- The Immortal Story of Habakhatoon and the Last Kashmiri Emperor

Romance in the Hills- The Immortal Story of Habakhatoon and the Last Kashmiri Emperor

CULTURE
Sameer Bhat Naad ha layei, Myani Yusufo wallo [Am calling out for you, come my Yusuf] ~quoted by the wandering Zoon, also known by her famous nom de plume, HabaKhatoon, the ravishing beauty, songster wife of Kashmir’s last independent king Yusuf Shah Chak. The year is 1579. The day is cloudy and unseasonably cool. There is talk that Emperor Akbar in a fit of secular benevolence has abolished Jizya – per capita tax on the unbelievers – and the plains of neighboring Hindustan are agog with songs of gramercy. Kashmir is a tiny independent kingdom, ringed by the mahogany mountains of Pir Panjal. A lot of wild strawberry has grown in the valley this season. Early morning a white horse has been seen cantering in the hills. The lone horseman appears regal. More than a huntsman, he looks l...
Trapped in Corona- Mumbai Man Hosted by Kashmiri Family Since 46 Days

Trapped in Corona- Mumbai Man Hosted by Kashmiri Family Since 46 Days

CULTURE
Sajad Hameed Amid Lock-down to Prevent Covid-19 from spreading further, a family in  Kunzar area of Tangmarg in North Kashmir is hosting a Hindu man from Mumbai in Mahrastra from the last 40 days, in a great display of Humanity. Amid attacks on Kashmiris in Himachal Pradesh in first week of April, Gotham Parikh, 42, who is a resident of Mumbai has been residing with this Muslim family like a family member at Kunzer's Utkioo Village of Baramulla, which shows real example of brotherhood, humanitarian and religious tolerance. Gotham was on tour purposes at the world famous tourist resort Gulmarg and other places in Valley but since lock-down over pandemic COVID-19 in India, he could not return home. The family of Mohammed Irshad, kept him in their residential house and have been host...
Dehradun Resident Rescued by Locals After ‘Tragic’ Accident- Try to Contact his Family in Dehradun

Dehradun Resident Rescued by Locals After ‘Tragic’ Accident- Try to Contact his Family in Dehradun

CULTURE
May 04 Sajad Hameed A Dehradun Local has met a tragic accident in Qazigund area of South Kashmir earlier this week and is currently admitted in SMHS hospital of Srinagar. Eyewitnesses told The Kashmiriyat that a Dehradun resident identified as Navajish Ansari, a resident of Gandhi Road in Dehradun was hit by a truck and when he was spotted by a group of locals he was lying down in a pool of blood. In an exemplar of humanity and Kashmiriyat, The locals rushed to his assistance and rushed him to the SMHS in Srinagar which is almost 70 kilometers away from the spot of accident in Qazigund, after which they tried to contact his family. However, they have been unable to do so. The Police station in Qazigund has also deputed one of its men to safeguard the injured Dehradun resi...

This weekend plan a trip to Athwatoo! District Admin throws open Tourist Complex

CULTURE
May 02 Mohammed Umar The Tourist Complex at Athwatoo has been thrown open for public soon after its completion in Bandipora and has witnessed a huge rush. Soon after its completion by Wullar Mansbal Development Authority at the cost of Rs 4 crore, the complex was thrown open for public without any official function owing to the Model Code of Conduct (MCC) in place. An official in Bandipora said that the district administration was keen to complete the construction of this complex as there was a demand for having an accommodation for tourists in the most visited tourist spot in Bandipora. About 12 Kilo-meters from the district headquarters, Athwatoo village is tucked between two mountains with lush green forests while the Madhumati stream flows through the heart of it. The hamlet has...