Cerfewed Night
CURFEWED NIGHT: BASHARAT PEER, RANDOM HOUSE INDIA, 2009, 239 pp.
The Kashmir conflict is not new for the people of the world and more so for a Kashmiri. Yet, as the author rightly points out, hardly any work exists in the canon of Indian Literature in English about this issue. Basharat Peer, in his debut book Curfewed Night, sets out to change exactly that. Whether he succeeds or not depends on what the author aspires for; to be a narrator presenting a true and holistic picture of the tragedy of Kashmir, or to lend a voice to the plight of a Kashmiri Muslim.
The beginning of the book paints a picture of the childhood village of the author; peaceful, isolated and generally apolitical. Nevertheless, the anti-India aura makes its presence felt in the 13 year olds (author himself) perspective. One reads about Kashmiris who felt deceived by the Indians and considered themselves anything but a part of this country. Otherwise, life ran at a normal pace and the people of the valley stayed busy in their daily chores and responsibilities.
All of that changed after the dreadful Gawkadal bridge incident of 19th May, 1990. Suddenly, Kashmir was riddled with bullets, bombs, protests and massacres. It is as if a trigger was pulled. The resentment, frustration and humiliation buried somewhere in the hearts of the Kashmiris had finally exploded. Countless took to the streets and were brutally crushed, the youth finally found a solution in the form of a 'sympathetic' Pakistan who was willing to train them and arm them to regain their lost freedom. And thus began the blood stained history of Kashmir.
The author provides a firsthand account of what a boy from Kashmir went through while growing up. His fascination and admiration towards the young militant boys is obvious by the way he describes them in the book, "When they returned as militants, they were heroes--people wanted to talk to them, touch them, hear their stories, invite them for a feast". The author recounts
The Kashmir conflict is not new for the people of the world and more so for a Kashmiri. Yet, as the author rightly points out, hardly any work exists in the canon of Indian Literature in English about this issue. Basharat Peer, in his debut book Curfewed Night, sets out to change exactly that. Whether he succeeds or not depends on what the author aspires for; to be a narrator presenting a true and holistic picture of the tragedy of Kashmir, or to lend a voice to the plight of a Kashmiri Muslim.
The beginning of the book paints a picture of the childhood village of the author; peaceful, isolated and generally apolitical. Nevertheless, the anti-India aura makes its presence felt in the 13 year olds (author himself) perspective. One reads about Kashmiris who felt deceived by the Indians and considered themselves anything but a part of this country. Otherwise, life ran at a normal pace and the people of the valley stayed busy in their daily chores and responsibilities.
All of that changed after the dreadful Gawkadal bridge incident of 19th May, 1990. Suddenly, Kashmir was riddled with bullets, bombs, protests and massacres. It is as if a trigger was pulled. The resentment, frustration and humiliation buried somewhere in the hearts of the Kashmiris had finally exploded. Countless took to the streets and were brutally crushed, the youth finally found a solution in the form of a 'sympathetic' Pakistan who was willing to train them and arm them to regain their lost freedom. And thus began the blood stained history of Kashmir.
The author provides a firsthand account of what a boy from Kashmir went through while growing up. His fascination and admiration towards the young militant boys is obvious by the way he describes them in the book, "When they returned as militants, they were heroes--people wanted to talk to them, touch them, hear their stories, invite them for a feast". The author recounts