The Untold Histories of Kashmir: Family memoirs and Sanskrit manuscripts
Read the latest publication in our series.
Hi there,
The rich history of Jammu and Kashmir is rarely shared and known within India, let alone outside. We’re delighted to have published a series of articles and publications on this varied history, by journalist Venus Upadhayaya.
Welcome also to our new Member Bittu Kaushal, who is the co-founder of Mauli Rituals. Inspired by the ancient Ayurvedic practices of India and crafted in England from the finest quality natural ingredients available, award winning Mauli Rituals was founded in 2014 by Anita and Bittu Kaushal. Anita focuses more on new product development and is customer facing, Bittu focuses on systems and support.
Welcome also to new Member Ragasudha Vinjamuri, who is an Associate Lecturer at the University of Sunderland in London. Founder of arts charity Sanskruti Centre for Cultural Excellence and disciple of Guru Dr. Uma Ramarao from Hyderabad, Ragasudha has made valuable contributions to Art, Culture, and Heritage scene in the UK, beyond her usual job and responsibility as a university educator. She has performed in different countries in Europe, in Switzerland, Czech Republic, Germany, Spain, Luxembourg, Belgium, and presenting dance at the United Nations Convention on Biodiversity COP11.
She was also invited to perform during two World Conventions inaugurated and concluded by consecutive honorable Presidents of India in 2012 and 2017 respectively. She has broken barriers in taking Indian dancing to a variety of subjects and occasions and used dance as a tool to raise awareness on topics of social and cultural importance. She is also instrumental in researching and highlighting folk/tribal dance forms of India, lesser-seen, and almost unknown in Britain. For her contributions to Art and Culture, she was conferred many awards by different national and international organisations in the last 15 years and with the prestigious British Citizen Award in 2021.
Family Memoirs, Civilisational Heritage, and Great Game Competition for Sanskrit Manuscripts
“After the first war of Indian independence of 1857 which the British termed Great Mutiny, Delhi was destroyed and Lahore emerged as a new intellectual center in the north western region(1). Incidentally this was also the time of the geopolitical Great Game whence the European powers were trying to understand and conquer the unruly frontiers beyond this region.
Understandably for the next hundred years Lahore became home to some of the best orientalists and philologists of the world including Pt. Gouri and his teachers.”
Others in the Kashmir series:
“Great Games were a series of geo-political activities between the Russian and British Empires from 1838 to 1907.
In the 19th century, they were driven by expansionist agendas and led to massive territorial, political and socio-economic changes in the region that lay between the two empires. The sandwiched region included today’s Central Asia, Afghanistan, India’s and Pakistan’s northern frontiers, today’s Xinjiang and Tibet.
During the Great Games period, Kashmir was ruled over by Dogras, a warrior race of the north western Himalayas and its adjoining Indus Basin.”
Small Piece of a Family’s History Could be Missing Chunk in Kashmir’s Puzzle
“There was an ancient route from Kashmir to Haridwar traversing through the shivalik ranges of Jammu that brought traders, seekers and invaders to India. Haridwar is a pilgrimage town of antiquity on the bank of the Ganges, about 16 miles downstream from Rishikesh from where Beatles started their journey into meditation in the late 1960s.”
Is My Jammu Village Standing on a Civilisational Catchment?
“As children, growing up in the old Jammu city, we could from the terrace watch a far off tree line and whenever there was noise on the border, my mother would point at the tree line and say that’s from where the noise is coming, ‘in that direction lies Pakistan’.”
“Gilgit is of high stakes today in the geo-political chess game—a disputed territory between India and Pakistan, China is building the $80 billion worth China-Pakistan Economic Corridor through it.”
Hydro-geology, bowlis and the people we call Dogras
“I’m a Dogra – put simply I’m from a land geologically sandwiched between the fertile plains of Indus and the mighty ranges of the North western Himalayas. For thousands of years this midland ranging from 1,000-4,000 feet above sea level became home to many who escaped from the floods of the mighty Indus or the harshness of the high ranges.”
Ancient Battles at India’s Gateway and and its Constant Reflections in Contemporary Geopolitics
“Neglecting a region’s history is akin to waging a covert war against it. Recorded history has often been a mixture of fiction and fantasy, its angle is often defined by the narrative adopted by the writer. And that has likely been dictated by the ruler that hired or patronized the writer.”
Can the ancient ‘Kashmir to Haridwar’ route be revitalised into a National Educational Route?
“A November 2022 report in The Tribune warns about increasing drug peddling involving youth into Kangra district of Himachal Pradesh from the adjoining regions of Punjab and the J&K union territory. The undercurrents are felt in my region too.”
The billions of dollars worth of my grandfather’s one rupee
“Nanku’s spiced channa in thick, fresh yogurt has also passed away with him. Downtown’s Jammu taste buds have evolved to momos, chowmein and spring rolls while retaining its kachaloos (taro spiced chat), samosas and sweets. Nanku’s family today sells pastries, cakes and aerated drinks. Until someone like Vikas Khanna rediscovers Nanku’s recipe, I fear the net worth of Nanku’s idea will die forever.”
Dogras, The Most Competent Militaries of the Great Games and The Policy Imperatives of Their Legacy
“The Dogra kingdom lay right between the British Empire and the Russian Empire during the 19th century when the geo-political rivalries called the “Great Games” were at their peak between the two empires.
Yet Dogras are the least studied in any geo-political context, except for vis-a-vis the contemporary Kashmir conflict. Dogra history has turned into a fodder for the Great Game propagandists of the past and the present.”
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