Short Stories of
Kashmir
These simple and unadorned tales deal with the people of Kashmir - their
loves, their hates, their deep-set superstitions, their struggles with
wild animals and untamed nature in some of her
fiercest moods. Great mountains can be not only majestic but they can be most
terrifying to those who fall a prey to wild storms while far away from any abode
of man. Only those who have spent a night alone in remote forests, while beasts
roam, can understand the pathetic alarm of the small Kashmiri lad in the woods
("The Lost Guide").
The stories, "To the Eden", and "Love in Valley", afford a
pictorial survey of the Vale, which has been called "Paradise of the
Indies". The ones entitled "Nambardar's Bull", "Return of
the Native" and "Vendetta", interestingly portray the
mountaineers, their pristine emotions and outlandish ways. The discerning reader
will realise that the stories are based on personal observations of the author
who had rambled across the length and breadth of the Valley.
The themes covered are diverse. For the Kashmiri, the stories, "Her Man
Gula", "Water-thief" and "The Confession", have a dejavu
quality, the nitty-gritty of down-to-earth life in bygone days when
organised violence was unknown. The same is the case with "Told by Rahti"
and "The Ear-ring". The bear and Leopard stories cater to the
interests of all children, young and old.
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