– Deepak Budki
Kashmir has, of late, produced many fiction writers both within and outside the Valley. The latter were forced to settle outside Kashmir due to the rise of militancy in the early nineties. Nevertheless, the writings of both groups are like two sides of the same coin: one depicts the suffering of people living in the Valley, and the other portrays the nightmare migrants endured during and after the exodus. Many of them are vitriolic in their outpourings, depicting the pain and tribulation their community has endured over the last thirty-five years.
Gauri Shankar Raina's collection of short stories titled 'U-Turn and Other Stories', published by Niyogi Books, New Delhi, in 2025, is a valuable addition to this series. He has penned these short stories in Kashmiri. At the same time, Pankaj Bhan, an English academic and editor of the journal 'Meeras', published by Kasheer Foundation, has eloquently and comprehensively translated them into English.
Born in Srinagar in 1955, Dr Gauri Shankar holds a doctorate from JLN University and is a well-known writer, playwright, translator and filmmaker. He started writing during his school days and adopted the pen name 'Mast'. He is proficient in Kashmiri, Hindi and English with around two dozen publications in Hindi and Kashmiri to his credit. Professionally, he remained associated with Doordarshan Srinagar.
The book 'U-Turn' contains twelve short stories, predominantly set in Kashmir and focusing on its culture before and after militancy. He has consciously refrained from hyperbole and evaded narrating horrifying events of the militancy era to maintain a secular undercurrent and continue the thread of togetherness of Kashmiris called Kashmiryat.
The first and a significant short story 'U-Turn' deals with the most topical subject, environmental degradation, especially of Dal Lake, besides the apathy of the State Government and bureaucracy towards tackling this grave problem, which frustrates a sincere, honest and internationally acclaimed environmentalist, A R Bhat, who undergoes a bout of depression and ultimately seeks an escape route.
As a Botanist, I have witnessed this phenomenon with a heavy heart during my long stay in Srinagar. I have watched the silting of Dal Lake, quarrying in the foothills of Shankracharya, and encroachments in Pahalgam, Gulmarg, and Sonmarg right under the noses of politicians who were expected to protect them. Even the mountains of Amarnath and Vaishnodevi have been disfigured under the pretext of temple tourism.
'A Journey by Bus' is a story of love at first sight between two young co-passengers on a day-long bus journey from Jammu to Srinagar that, unfortunately, ends in a fiasco, thereby highlighting the disadvantages of stratification in Hindu society. The writer also presents a panoramic view of the picturesque hill stations en route.
Another story is titled 'Babuji's Miracle', which deals with a social evil prevalent in our country called land and property grabbing by gangsters who have political clout, and therefore, the police and judiciary are ineffective against them. A person whose property is under siege cleverly tricks the usurper by clandestinely circulating a rumour that the earmarked property is haunted, as ghosts are said to inhabit it. This forces the grabber to give up its claim on it.
The short story 'Boarding Card' again reflects the orthodox and conservative nature of Kashmiri Pandit society, as in 'A Journey by Bus'. A handsome young Kashmiri man working at the Airport falls in love with Lora, a model from Berlin seeking a break in Bollywood. He wants to marry her, but his family disagrees. Later on, he learns that she is suffering from Mesothelioma, a rare lung cancer and may not live long. He, in turn, informs his parents, and the same conservative parents advise him not to ditch her and instead marry her. She, however, decides to go and join her mother in Berlin.
'He and She' is a story set in modern life, with fragile bonds shadowed by material gain. It narrates a love affair that bears no fruit; the two get separated, the girl becomes an event manager, while the boy remains a poor artist. After a long time, he is commissioned to present a programme in Mumbai, where he meets the same girl in the garb of the event manager, but she refuses to recognise him. This prompts him to reconsider the relationship and accept a colleague's pending proposal.
'Interlude' is a story about a thanatophobic person, Shibanji, who undergoes a surrealistic experience that opens the door to his subconscious and unconscious mind. He confides in his close friend, who, too, is greatly worried, yet reassures him. While preparing for his inevitable death, he tries to expedite the nominations on his bank accounts and pension papers. Surprisingly, after some time, he recuperates, and his friend feels happy to see him again in good spirits.
'Mannequins' is an impressive, thought-provoking and symbolic story. It is a story of an uprooted Kashmiri migrant, Vinod, who is forced to move along with his ailing wife from Jammu to Chandigarh and finally to Delhi in search of shelter and employment, besides the availability of AIIMS, where he wants his wife with a terminal illness to get proper medical attention. Being skilled in draping mannequins, his employer once ordered him to get a mannequin from a distant market. He thinks about the mannequins, which to him are inanimate idols, yet when draped and beautified, they attract customers. He is led to a store where he faints, and later, after recovery, he carries the mannequin to his shop. On reaching the shop, he receives a message that his wife, Prabha, is in serious condition. He rushes to his house, takes his wife to AIIMS, tries to console her, but all along he thinks of Death and His justice and prays that his wife should be relieved from the unbearable pain.
In the story 'Home Coming', the writer recounts the journey of Kashi Nath, who visits Kheer Bhawani (Abode of Goddess Ragñya) along with other Kashmiri Pandit devotees. He is seen by his Muslim neighbour, who insists that he should stay with them for a few days. He and his son enjoy the neighbour's hospitality. While he visits his old house in the neighbourhood, his neighbour returns to him all the precious things he had recovered from his house and preserved, and his son goes on an errand with the neighbour's son. He does not return in the evening or the following day, which makes his father anxious. Fortunately, he returns the day after, accompanied by a policeman who informs the parents that he was rounded up by the police, suspecting him to be one of the miscreants, and only after verification has he been released and brought here for handing over to his parents. This relieves Kashi Nath, who wastes no time in leaving the Valley the next morning.
'Reverie' reflects a person's emotions as he remembers his partner, who departed from this mortal world long ago.
The next story in the book is 'The Shroud Maker', a poignant tale of a master craftsman who earns his livelihood as a tailor and focuses on educating his children. A known, respectable social worker persuades him to sew some shrouds for the disposal of the dead. He accepts the gratuitous work but loses his clientele as a result. People get angry about him doing that kind of job. He is ostracised and forced to leave the place for good. After a long time, the equation changes when his daughter returns to the same place as the District Magistrate.
'The Umbrella Man' is yet another touching story in which a starving man, abandoned by his employer and friends, takes up a low-grade occupation repairing umbrellas against the wishes of his acquaintances. Later, due to militancy, his family is uprooted, but his daughter pursues her goals and gets a job in a foreign bank, which totally changes their status. She carries her father with her to the astonishment of all who looked down upon them earlier. The woes of Kashmiri Pandits, refugees in their own land, are very effectively narrated in this story by the author.
The last story in the book is 'Cave', in which a group of archaeologists is on an expedition to unearth the secrets of a cave in Kashmir, but heavy rains prevent them from doing so. As one of them, a Kashmiri Pandit, walks down the hill, which is brimming with water, he is overwhelmed by the scenery as he visualises how the Valley must have looked when it was Satisar lake, thus mentally exploring his own past.
Shankar's short stories mostly revolve around human travesties and the endeavours of their protagonists to overcome adversity. His characters are strong, analytical, and often spiritual, and they exude a 'never give up' attitude. In Mannequins, he has highlighted the fact that Kashmiri Migrants concentrated on the education of their children at the expense of their own health and comfort.
The writer remains optimistic about the future of Kashmir and its syncretic culture. He often experiences nostalgia for life in Kashmir and reminisces about his past. Most of his recollections find mention in his stories like description of an abandoned house in 'Boarding Card', the view of Vitasta (River Jhelum) in the evening with floating lighted earthen lamps, crossing the river by shikaras (boats), a bird's eye view of Habbakadal (A bridge in Srinagar bubbling with life) in 'The umbrella Man', visit to abandoned house, sudden public demonstrations and police excesses in 'Home Coming', life in the refugee camp in Delhi in 'He and She', life in one-room Barsati given to him as refugee in Delhi, and purchase of Himachal apples in 'Mannequins'.
The writing style is very smooth and captivating, further underscoring the dexterity and artistry of the original Kashmiri language. The author remains a passive narrator, neither imposing himself on the text nor using melodramatic expressions to describe situations that otherwise could have led him to do so. In the end, I congratulate both the author for such excellent fiction and the translator for a beautiful translation.
*****
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