Theatrics of Occupation

ATHER ZIA Kashmiris were mourning the hanging of Afzal, a freedom fighter (previously armed) and a Mirza Ghalib aficionado, at India’s Tihar jail. They were shaking off the last vestiges of a coma-inducing curfew which was imposed to numb any arm-shaking, leg-moving, tongue-wagging or neck-raising reaction and the perpetual pain … Read more →

Three Lovers Of Night

Arif Ayaz Parrey At first glance, there was nothing ordinary about Roqsaan. Her skin had the sheen of February snow and her eyes were winter nights. She had the attitude of Chilla-i-Kalaan and a pout which warmed men’s hearts like the sun must in Chilla-i-Kalaan, leaving them with an afterglow … Read more →

Art of Protest in Kashmir

Written and Curated by Wasim Mushtaq Wani MOHAMMAD ABDULLAH MEHBOOB (1943) Mehboob’s most powerful and dynamically effective painting during the turmoil is interestingly a self-conscious quote from Picasso’s Guernica, 1937.  There cannot be a better reference to quote from the history of modern art which makes such a significant relevance as … Read more →

Taliban In Context of Kashmir

Syed Zafar Mehdi A palpable buzz in the town is that after the withdrawal of NATO forces from Afghanistan by the end of 2014, the hard-bitten Talibani guerillas may trickle over to the Indian-occupied-Kashmir. Local media has been sent into a tizzy as seasoned political pundits discuss its possible repercussions. … Read more →

Carpentry

Ashfaq Saraf When she wakes up panting in the middle of night, he is wakened too; mostly without delay and sometimes only after she [heaves] Rasheed’s name. He lights on the torch, navigates the glow across the span of the room to locate her trembling face, moves it further to … Read more →

Faux Democracy

By Dibyesh Anand We do not like to ring you We do not like to come to you We do not like to listen to you We will hang your husband Under due process of law Dangle his body for 30 minutes To ensure he speaks no longer To ensure … Read more →

Cordoba

By Allama Iqbal Written in 1932 on Spanish soil, mainly in the Mosque of Cordoba I Chain of day and night Fashioner of events Basis of life and death Two tone silken thread Fiber of attributes Pitch of prospects Chain of day and night Sitting in judgment Setting a value … Read more →

The story behind Mehjoor’s postage stamp

Haroon Mirani In 2013 India released a stamp featuring most famous pro-freedom poet of Kashmir, Mahjoor, who strongly detested Kashmir’s accession to the country in 1947. Peerzada Ghulam Ahmad popularly known by his pen name Mahjoor was a revolutionary poet, who never favoured Kashmir becoming part of India. Indian Prime … Read more →