Hospitality of Kashmiris bowls over K'taka women

When 40-year-old Vasantha from Mysore district boarded a Srinagar-bound flight (via Delhi) in the morning on July 15 at Bengaluru international airport, she was unsure whether her decision to visit the troubled Kashmir was right or wrong.  

Working with a self-help group (SHG), she has to set up a stall for the sale of her wooden toys in a SARAS fair in Srinagar. “A number of people back home told me that Kashmir is not safe because of terrorism and frequent firing and bomb blasts. However, my husband and my son enco­uraged me to go ahead with the progra­mme,” she recalled.

Now in Kashmir, Vasantha has a mess­age for her people as also for others in
different parts of the country: “Kashmir is beyond terrorism. People here are very hospitable  and they make you feel at home and talk with respect and ensure that outsiders are not put to trouble or inconvenience. Here I feel as if I am at home. I along with other stall owners from my state visited Gulmarg, two days back. It is like heaven because of its breath-taking beauty. I have not seen such a beautiful place in any part of the country,” she said.

Vasantha is slightly upset as she came to know from Kashmiri women custo­m­ers that the SHGs are not very common in the Valley. “SHGs have changed the lives of women in Karnataka, particularly in rural areas. They are financially indepen­dent and support families. Women in Kashmir must also form such groups to show their worth and make the financial condition of their families better,” she said. A post graduate in history from Mysore University, Vasantha during her interaction with Kashmiri women and girls found that most of them are intelligent and talented.

Prefers not to take up job

After her post graduation, the Mysore woman preferred a job neither in government nor in private sector. “In the SHG, you are owner yourself unlike a job in the government or private sector, where you are under some one. Improvement of your work in the SHG is motivating with the realisation that you are doing it for yourself,” Vasantha said.

She said she would not perform the Amarnath pilgrimage this year despite being in Kashmir. “I came to know about the Amarnath Yatra only last month when I was watching a television programme. Next year, I will come along with my family and undertake the Yatra,” discl­osed Vasantha. She talks to her husband, a businessman and son, working in a private company, in Mysore on the phone in the morning and evening. “Our mobile phones do not work here, we have to go to public calling booths (PCOs),”she said.

Besides Vasantha, another woman from Karnataka, Kabbalibai, had set up her stall in the fair. Hailing from Kolipalya village in Chamrajnagar district, she speaks a smattering of Hindi. Her husband, a farmer, died 18 years back. Kabbalibai joined a SHG and she sells cotton bags with embroidery work. Her two sons and two daughters are married.

“Working with the SHG provided me more self-respect and dignity. Despite
being a widow, I earn and help my family. I am not dependent upon others. If I was not in the SHG, I would not have been in this heaven called Kashmir. Once I return, I will tell my family, including my grand children, everything about Kashmir and people here,” she said.

Twenty six-year-old Devi from Mandya is happy with the rush of custo­mers to her stall.  She sells hand bags, water bags, cus­hion cover, mobile pouch, cushion cover and other items made up of banana fiber. Her eight-year-old daughter and six-year-old son are at her home with their father and grandmother. “I miss them a lot, so do they. But I am happy being here in Kashmir. Never had I imagined or dreamt of coming to Srinagar and doing business. I am not disappointed leaving my kids at home and coming over here,” she said.

Impressed with beauty

Devi is impressed with the beauty of females in Kashmir and wishes her daug­hter to be like them.” I wish she is as pretty as they are. The girls here are very down to earth and do not show attitude. Their behaviour with us is very nice. Some boys and girls who have studied in Bangalore try to talk with us in broken Kannada. It seems funny,”she said.
Forty-year-old Kamakshi from Shanabhoganahalli of Hunusur taluk in Mysore district, who also had set up a stall, said the handicrafts of Karnataka also attract a lot of customers. “Undoubtedly, Kashmiri handicrafts are well known across the country. But those from Karnataka are also being liked by people here,” she claimed.     

Suhail, a Kashmiri youth, who had studied in Bangalore, said it took him a long time to locate the Karnataka stalls.” There are very few stalls from Karnataka in the fair. Other states like Andhra Pradesh, Goa, Kerala, Punjab and UP have more stalls. The four women from Karnataka and their stalls reminded me of the nice days in Bangalore as a student. Surely we miss that city and our friends there,” he said.

Various SHGs from 22 states set up 178 stalls in the SARAS fair. The products showcased include handicrafts, food items, handlooms, and furniture and furnishing items. Usually we see Kashmiris selling handicrafts in Karnataka.  Now, we have come to knock at the door of Kashmir for sale of our handicrafts. I think our gesture will strengthen the bonds of the people of the two states and pave the  way for serious trade between Karnataka and Kashmir,” she said.