I SPENT A WEEK IN KASHMIR by Oli Murugavel

I SPENT A WEEK IN

KASHMIR JANUARY 2018

Â© OLI MURUGAVEL 2018

Hey I am Oli, Photography and Digital Art give me abundant opportunities to observe and explore anything in my own way. People and their life, cities and its vibe, abstraction, minimalism, and simplicity intrigues me. The simplest form of the subject in its authentic state of existence. Love to remain in that state of mindfulness, constantly perceiving the world and its abstract occurrences.

@olimurugavel www.facebook.com/oliartandphotography www.flickr.com/olimurugavel www.issuu.com/olimurugavel You can buy my photographs and artworks at www.mipic.co/gostudio or contact me directly at +971 52 843 7788 guysscreens@gmail.com

“I PHOTOGRAPH TO FIND OUT WHAT SOMETHING WILL LOOK LIKE PHOTOGRAPHED” “NO ONE MOMENT IS MOST IMPORTANT. ANY MOMENT CAN BE SOMETHING” - GARRY WINOGRAND

It’s not an impressive scenic neighborhood but this scene from my hotel window made an everlasting impression of Kashmir in me. One wouldn’t care much about this lifeless land but as a childishenthusiastic observer I was too keen to capture every little thing I got to see. SRINAGAR 4

Proudly fought with the -3Ë&#x161;C cold, thought to be the one to step out first, I was wrong. Kashmiri people were already up and busy in their daily routine SRINAGAR 7

A garbage collector at his morning routine SRINAGAR

The traditional outfit for both males and females in Kashmir is the Phiran (or Pheran) The phiran consist of two gowns, one over the other. The traditional phiran extends to the feet, which was popular up to the late 19th century C.E. However, a relatively modern variation of the phiran extends to below the knees. 10

The traditional Phiran is also sold to nonKashmiris and tourists to be worn without any outlandish thoughts. One could get a good locally made Phiran for INR 600-800 SRINAGAR

A Kanger (also known as Kangri or Kangid or Kangir) is an earthen pot woven around with wicker filled with hot embers used by Kashmiris beneath their traditional clothing to keep themselves warm. Which is also regarded as a work of art. It is normally kept inside the Phiran or inside a blanket 15

Observing the everyday life on the way we proceeded towards Gulmarg, assuring to explore Srinagar city at the end of the itinerary. 16

“GO INDIA GO BACK” Such graffiti are all over the city SRINAGAR

“WE WANT FREEDOM” SRINAGAR

“GO INDIA” “GO INDIA GO BACK” SRINAGAR

Tourists take a quick stop at these rental shops on the way before they begin to ascend Gulmarg.

around the premises of Trincomalee Shiva Temple

Gumboots, light and heavy snow jackets are available on rental basis. Socks and hand gloves are sold as well GULMARG 25

An Indian army convoy was in front of us and I had to wait too long to get a clear shot of the picturesque route to Gulmarg

At last, I could get a clear shot. The route to Gulmarg is enchanting with its pure air, magnificent trees, and thrill-filled hairpin bends. 28

The famous and Mustdo stunning Gondola ride at Gulmarg. It’s the world’s second highest operating cable car since the closure in 2008 of the Mérida cable car in Venezuela GULMARG

Sledging, skiing and plenty of other snow activities are here at Gulmarg for sport enthusiasts. During off-season (Nov-Feb) the local population doesnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t get much business out of these activities GULMARG

Exploring the St. Maryâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s church and its neighborhood GULMARG

Spent quite a lot of time exploring the snow covered Gulmarg

Farooq Ahmad Lone is our tourist guide at Gulmarg. He is energetic and kind (although had a tough time smiling to the camera.. hehe..) Wandering through the usual tourist spots, we got excited about the word ‘village’ from our conversation with Farooq when he shared about himself and his life. He resides in a village called Ferozpora, not very far from Gulmarg. He was a bit surprised when we requested “We want to see your village and meet your family” But he didn’t hesitate a moment to accept our request and said “You are most welcome. Let’s go!”

Shakeel Ahmad is our driver at Gulmarg and cousin of Farooq. He resides at Ferozpora as well and shared a lot of things about local life and struggles in tourism industry.

Ferozpora is a beautiful village in the Baramulla district of Jammu and Kashmir. “Most of the people here are farmers and most of the young population of the village works in private sectors of tourism” explained Farooq Villages are always sweet and awesome. 44

“This year we had the least amount of snowfall in this area. Usually it snows 20-30 inches” said Farooq. I could imagine the picture in my head with that amount of snow on these streets FEROZPORA VILLAGE 47

“I am 1970 10th grade. My little English verry goooodh ah!!?” Hahahaha” together we laughed out loud after every cute little English phrase of Farooq’s father Farooq’s father is a kind and loving farmer. He welcomed us with a warm hug and was very happy to share many things about Ferozpora. He is an avid hookah smoker and gave away a quick demo FEROZPORA VILLAGE 48

Farooq’s little brother Miraj. He is shy and quiet but was the first one got ready to pose when I said ‘pictures’. He is in his 6th grade and also helps his father in farming. I can never forget such soulful and beautiful eyes as Miraj’s FEROZPORA VILLAGE 51

Beautiful smile isnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t it! Sweet little boy from Ferozpora Village

Panoromic view of the Nalla Ferozpora river at the backyard of Ferozpora village All we could see was a small stream as the rainfall this year is way too less than the last 55

Exploring the backyard of Babareshie Jamia Masjid BARAMULLA GULMARG ROAD 56

Sunrise in Gulmarg is something not to be missed 58

A Kashmiri man carrying freshly made local bread for breakfast GULMARG

The neighborhood of Gulmarg is a paradise for ‘wood texture lovers’ GULMARG 62

After a night stay at Gulmarg we headed towards Pahalgam ON THE WAY TO PAHALGAM

The road to Pahalgam via Anantnag had various check points controlled by the Indian army. ON THE WAY TO PAHALGAM

We expected Pahalgam to be more snowy but it had way less snow than Gulmarg this year PAHALGAM

â&#x20AC;&#x153;There is no other way to reach to some of the scenic spots around Pahalgam unless you rent a pony rideâ&#x20AC;? Said a pony-man. The beautiful Baisaran village up above the mountain is something not be missed PAHALGAM

Javed, a 15 year old pony-man accompanied us throughout the ride He was extremely good at handling the ponies on the steeply, snowy, slippery mountain. PAHALGAM

Baisaran is just 5kms from Pahalgam. But it takes 3-4 hours to explore in the mountains ON THE WAY TO BAISARAN 75

“These ponies??” I asked “They are going home. They know their place. They go back on their own after work” said Javed By a tongue click sound of his they moved aside and gave way for us ON THE WAY TO BAISARAN

After a 40 minutes ride towards Baisaran we took a break to click some pictures, give ourselves and the ponies some rest ON THE WAY TO BAISARAN

I couldn’t keep track of time and we almost reached Baisaran. The first sight of Baisaran was exquisite BAISARAN 80

Javed shoes are 6 months old and the pony is 6 years old. Bearing me these 6 legs hiked for almost 6 hours on a freezing evening BAISARAN

The village of Baisaran is mostly empty during winters. People move down the mountain to warm places until summer. Although this year there wasn’t much snow I was told it was -8˚C up here. We could see empty houses all over the village but our ponyman said “There is one family which never leaves the village at any season” BAISARAN VILLAGE 84

The house of the family which stays up in the mountain throughout the year. BAISARAN VILLAGE 86

We were privileged to meet the family. We walked in and the house was surprisingly warm and comforting. We escaped the cold for few minutes by the natural heating system of the house. The kitchen’s fire was keeping the heat even all over the house (couldn’t photograph due to very low light) We had a quick chat about our so far Kashmir trip and places we have visited. They offered us tea but we kindly refused as we were already an hour late to descend the mountain. BAISARAN VILLAGE 88

Empty houses in the village BAISARAN VILLAGE

Our pony-man showing us around the beautiful village BAISARAN VILLAGE 92

It was almost dark while we began descending the mountain. Javed and the other ponyman were having conversations in Kashmiri. I asked out of patience “How long is it gonna take to get down Javed? Its too dark. Any wild animals up here??” “Of-course sir, there are lion and wolves but they don’t come out until the daylight fades” Freezing temperature, chances of wild animals, invisible trails, a young pony.. It was an adventurous evening I would never forget TOWARDS PAHALGAM 94

Javed took extra care and my new pony did a real good job getting me back to Pahalgam TOWARDS PAHALGAM

Next day : All set to explore some other scenic spots around Pahalgam

Mushtag is our driver at Pahalgam. His van kept us warm with some fine collections of classic Hindi songs. In a very less time we became good friends and he gave us tons of information on Pahalgamâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s weather and its people. PAHALGAM

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Towards Aru Valley

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Villagers on the way to Aru Valley

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On the way to Aru Valley

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Frozen banks of Lidder river ARU VALLEY 109

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The unforgettable Aru Valley

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“Hold it, feel it” ARU VALLEY

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Mubashir served us an awesome ginger tea up in the mountains on the way to Aru Valley. He is into adventurous trekking arrangements for 15 years. ARU VALLEY

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Our driver Mushtag had an eye on all the hairpin bends of the narrow mountain road to Betaab Valley TOWARDS BETAAB VALLEY

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A beautiful village on the way to Betaab valley

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Panoramic view of Betaab valley The valley got its name from the Sunny DeolAmrita Singh hit debut Hindi film ‘Betaab’ BETAAB VALLEY 120

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Some closer details of the Betaab Valley.

Villagers on the way to Chandanwari

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Panoramic view of Chandanwari and Sheshnag river. The same river is called as Lidder river when it reaches Pahalgam. Chandanwari is the base camp for Amarnath Yatra. The trek to Amarnath Cave temple is approximately 28kms from Chandanwari CHANDANWARI 127

CHANDANWARI & SHESHNAG RIVER

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On the way from Pahalgam to Srinagar is the historic Martand Sun temple at Anantnag The Martand Sun Temple is a Kashmiri Hindu temple dedicated to Surya (the chief solar deity in Hinduism) and built during the 8th century CE. The Martand Sun Temple was built by the third ruler of the Karkota Dynasty, Lalitaditya Muktapida. It is said to have been built during 725-756 CE. The foundation of the temple is said to have been around since 370-500 CE MARTAND SUN TEMPLE ANANTNAG

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MARTAND SUN TEMPLE ANANTNAG 132

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Panoramic view of the ruins. MARTAND SUN TEMPLE ANANTNAG

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Some of the carved wall sculptures inside the main chamber of the temple MARTAND SUN TEMPLE ANANTNAG

The rear side of the main chamber MARTAND SUN TEMPLE ANANTNAG 140

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Gund is a scenic village on the way to Sonamarg I was very excited about Sonamarg but it was closed due to heavy snowfall Explored some villages on the way to Sonamarg and returned to Srinagar GUND VILLAGE

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On the way to Srinagar from Sonamarg, we took a quick stop at a beautiful small town called Kangan. At a local tea shop, shoulder to shoulder with Kashmiri people,the experience was very delightful. The fine taste of tea went very well with their hand made bread KANGAN

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At the tea shop an old man came close. Took a closer look at my cameras. “Are you Indian media?” he asked with his gravelly and shaky voice “No sir.. I am an Indian tourist” He sat next to me. Held my shoulders and said “Sorry to say this... but Indian media is hopeless” We laughed and had a nice chat for about 10 minutes. Aam Sahib is a retired geological surveyor from Kangan. He has traveled all over India for his work. He could easily recognize my native city and said “Madras is an awesome place. I love it!!” KANGAN

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Back to Srinagar. Its time to explore the city life and the famous Dal lake DAL LAKE SRINAGAR 148

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Lucky for us! An awesome overcast day. DAL LAKE SRINAGAR

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Walking along the lake DAL LAKE SRINAGAR

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A traditional Kashmiri restaurant serving Kashmiri Wazwan at Dargah market SRINAGAR

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Walking around the Dargah market street. Local food, sweets and people SRINAGAR

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Barbecue on the streets DARGAH MARKET SRINAGAR

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Street cricket HAZRATBAL SRINAGAR

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Exploring the spice market. The 4kg rock in my hand is the Lahore rock salt SRINAGAR

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Lal Chowk bridge market SRINAGAR

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Shalimar Bhag is a Mughal garden in Srinagar. The Bagh was built by Mughal Emperor Jahangir for his wife Noor Jahan, in 1619. The Bagh is considered the high point of Mughal horticulture. It is now a public park The garden is considered to be very beautiful during the autumn and spring seasons due to the color change in leaves of the famed Chinar trees SRINAGAR 166

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SHALIMAR BHAG 170

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SHALIMAR BHAG

It’s time to get on the most famous Dal lake and explore its life and people. The lake is absolutely serene and I couldn’t take my eyes off DAL LAKE SRINAGAR 174

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A Kashmiri girl rowing her own boat to home after school DAL LAKE SRINAGAR

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The silky smooth Shikara ride. A must do activity on the Dal lake. A meditative experience DAL LAKE SRINAGAR 178

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Floating market on the Dal lake DAL LAKE SRINAGAR

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A gorgeous traditional Kashmiri house surrounded by trees on the lake DAL LAKE SRINAGAR

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An old fisherman warming up with his Kanger. DAL LAKE SRINAGAR

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An old man waiting for his customers to board his Shikara. DAL LAKE SRINAGAR

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‘Shop while you float’ Kashmir handicraft producers sell their products on these floating shops. A floating shop waits to pick up a fellow worker for the evening business routine DAL LAKE SRINAGAR

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THANKS FOR WATCHING