Book: City as memory: a short biography of Srinagar
Author: Safaf Wani
Publisher: Aleph book company
Pages: 180
Reviewer: inam ul rehman
If you look at the mesmerising cover illustration of Zainab Tambawalla, evocative and detailed that it visually tells a silent introduction to the book.
The city of Srinagar has been described in myriad ways. Basharat Peer referred Srinagar as a medieval town caught in the modern warfare. For Khalid Mir it induces the memory of Jaffna Street. For the author of the book, Srinagar or Sirinagar, as she uses it, evokes a feeling of undefined relationship, which she is unable to communicate.
To define her relationship with Srinagar city she seeks help of many people. Shahar-i-Khas is an important but a small part of Srinagar city. It was this Shahar-i-Khas which was responsible for making Kashmir famous for its hospitality. And every community extended hospitality to travellers.
However, the author brings up the underbelly of this place to the fore. The affluent old inhabitants of this place have moved to other places, but, as the author notes, refuse to leave their identity and carry their “biases” with them. This urban rural divide written with a tinge of satire is an everyday routine. The urban rural divide is not confined to Srinagar only. It is a worldwide phenomenon and age-old practice. City people are generally cultured, mannered, sophisticated, and richer than their village counterparts. And cities are more valued for obvious reasons. City dwellers looking down on rustic people is nothing new.
She does not describe the architecture marvel of the old city, neither the roads and narrow by-lanes which are stories in themselves. Instead, her gaze looks at some of the things which people don’t want to write about. On social media platforms, however, this ugliness has raised smear campaigns. She intersperses her observation of the city with history. An interesting take, sadly she is not able to carry on. This can be ascribed to her not being confident enough, or not being keen observant of things.
For me the bright spot of the book is her take on Hanji community of Kashmir. One of the maligned communities of Kashmir, the author, once again, quotes one of a journalist from this community: “the water is our home and we care for it in sustainable ways.”
Since it is the prerogative of the author on what to write about, one cannot say she should have written on some specific things also. One question that I couldn’t resist: did it justify a book? I am not sure. There is less of the author’s own memories and more reportage of other people’s recollections. It has marred her narrative, making the book more akin to newspaper reportage than a work of literature.
Her use of vernacular names, although not consistent, for the places
was first tested by Kashmir Dispatch portal (now defunct).
There are contradictory statements and typo errors, one cannot entirely fault her as it is the job of the lazy editor to rectify such things. There are factual errors. Tufail Matoo was killed in 2010, Burhan Wani’s killing in July 2016 sparked protests for months. The same protests didn’t spill over in the next year. The Taliban of Afghanistan was not formed when insurgency started in Kashmir. Like most rulers Yusuf Shah Chak was not a Kashmiri. Therefore, Kashmir losing sovereignty in 1584 is inaccurate. One of the great saints of 16th century Sheikh Yaqub Sarfi invited the Mughals to Kashmir as the Chaks refused to stop persecution of Muslims of Kashmir. Yusuf Shah Chak was not deceitfully arrested as many authors would have Kashmiris to believe. At Akbar’s court, Yusuf Shah Chak was granted a mansabdari and fought on his behalf.
As mentioned earlier, her observation of the city with a broth of historical context makes for an interesting read, however, she is not able to sustain this approach as the author gets stuck on the words of others. Lastly, when you seek sociological history, it is better to turn to sociologists, not to mass communication or English professors.
Pic courtesy: Author's X handle
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