Kashmir; a mirage, a dream.
Kashmir; love and void.
Kashmir; broken but beautiful.
Kashmir; food and people.
Kashmir; heaven and paradise.
Look at my wide smile. Amir Khusro said, “Agar firdaus bar roo-e zameen ast, Hameen ast-o hameen ast-o hameen ast.” I never thought I would be able to make it to the paradise on earth. The moment I landed, the breeze had some magic. Some sense of nostalgia to it, waiting to be relived again. Trust me, it is the most beautiful place I have ever seen. The winters are about to get over, the summers are about to start. The last leaf has fallen, the first bud is about to arrive.
Think of me as an excited child, looking outside the aircraft’s window and witnessing the beauty before even touching down. Think of me as a tourist not exploring it like a tourist. Being there, like I’m in my own city, walking over the bridges of Nigeen Lake. Life in Kashmir reflects your truest self. There’s nothing hidden. It made me feel familiar to it as soon as I kept my first step.
I found myself sitting in one of the rooms of Nehru’s home in Kashmir, they say, which has now been converted into a hotel. The arch shaped door and a frame of Shikara, made me want to go for a ride.
Trying, the sumptuous Wazwan at Ahdoo’s, one of the oldest restaurants in Srinagar and falling in awe for the language and people. Next day, I found myself in the middle of Dal Lake, sitting in a Shikara. The journey was flowing, like the waves in Dal.
Warm smiles, warm sunsets, cold nights, coldest memories. It is an ensemble of all. It has a touch of me too. There’s so much to tell, but more than that, there’s so much to keep to myself. Kashmir, will always be an unforgettable memory.
I flowed selflessly with the beauty of the paradise on this earth, like the waves of Dal, took a part of my heart and flowed far far away...
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