chapter five from the field: exploring cultural...
TRANSCRIPT
CHAPTER FIVE
From the Field: Exploring Cultural Change
I
In the previOus chapter, we discussed the method used during the
course of this work, the area of research and the field of study which
· constituted the universe of for the purpose of this work. In this
chapter, we will focus on the following aspects of cultural change
among the Kashmiri Pandits in the camps of Delhi:
• Occupation
• Political orientation
• Education
• Marriage
• Religion , mainly festivals
• Cuisine
• Language
• Dress
The older generation is obviously more aware about the 'original'
culture and consequently the changes that have taken place. This
implies that there is a notion of what cultural was in the past and
what is experienced as culture today is different from this notion. In
culture studies any discussion on cultural change presumes a state
that was prior to the present period. The older generation among the
Kashmiri Pandits could also explain why certain customs were
followed, what certain rituals meant. In depth interviews were
conducted on each of the aspects enumerated above and an attempt
has been made here to present the Kashmiri Pandit culture as it was
and the changes that have occurred both in Kasl}mir and in the camp
but our focus will primarily be on the cultural changes that we can
see in the camps.
Let us define acculturation so that we can locate the cultural
processes that have taken place on forced migration. "Acculturation
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refers to the process by which an individual or group acquires the
cultural characteristics of another through direct contact and
interaction. It can also be defined as the process of acquiring the item
or items of culture of a society not one's own." (Singh, 1998: 12)
In order to understand the pre-migrant culture of the Kashmiri
Pandits it is imperative to refer to one of the c~assical works on
Kashmir by T.N.Madan, a social anthropologist, 'Family and Kinship:
study of the Pandits in rural Kashmir'(1989). Madan, a Kashmiri
Pandit himself has written perhaps the most comprehensive work on ·
the culture of the Kashmiri Pandits. He did his field work in
Kashmir, in the village of Utrassu-Umanagri , during 1957-58. The
main focus of his work was the family and kinship structure among
the Pandits of rural Kashmir. When Madan conducted his study the
· Kashmiri culture was already in the midst of a change due' to the
forces of westernization and m<;:>dernization, we shall see the examples
of this in the appropriate sections of this chapter. He also had the
advantage of speaking in Kashmiri which definitely added to the
quality of his field work as he could capture the nuances.
Thus, the two mam obvious differences in Madan's work and this
thesis are that the formers work was done in Kashmir and also the
time difference. The situation. for the Kashmiri Pandits has changed a
lot with their forced migration which probably they had never
foreseen. Madan's comment that is of immense importance for us is
that "Brahmans have essentially the same culture and social
organisation all over rural Kashmir." (Madan, 1989: 11). He writes
about the Kashmiri Pandits:
The Saraswat brahmans of Kashmir who constitute the
great majority of their native Hindus, prefer a somewhat
different interpretation of their caste name. Several of my
informants linked to that of Saraswati , the Brahmanical
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goddess of learning and claimed that ~he Kashmiri Brahmins
are distinct from the Saraswat Brahmans elsewhere. . . the
Brahmans of Kashmir were in past times renowned for their
learning and scholastic achievements and are known as KPs
all over the country. As is well known the Sanskrit word
Pandit means a learned man they refer to ·themselves as
bhatta , which is the prakrit form of the Sanskrit bhartri
meaning doctor, the designation of great scholars. Besides
the Pandits there are two other Hlndu minority groups in
Kashmir - buher (bohra) and the purib (purbi). They have
been almost assimilated into Pandit culture although
intefiilarriage and inter-dining are as yet the exception
rather than the rule. (Ibid: 13)
II
In this section we shall look at the field and its various aspects in
greater detail.
CAMP ORGANISATION
The following section describes the living conditions in the camp, the
manner in which the Pandits shifted into these camps and the
process of settling down into the camps. A description of the physical
features of the camp has already been given in the previous chapter.
Information regarding the camp and the camp residents was given by
the senior most male member of the camp, he has been in the camp
form the very beginning of the migration and is considered as the
leader of the camp and in a way their spokesperson. We can see
informal hierarchy at work here which later becomes more formalised,
what is interesting is that the camp residents consider him an
authority on the ancient shastras and scriptures of ,the Hindus which
lend to considerable legitimacy to his leadership. He later disclosed
that he was the camp commander and hence was in a position to give
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information about the occupation and education of the residents,
which helped in deducing the class to which they belonged before and
after the migration, age of marriage, size and structure of the family.
All this helped in giving an overall picture of the residents of the
camp.
The initial number of families in the camp was 4 7 and now there are
about 22 families. Those who have moved out have taken houses/
apartments on rent while the r~cher families have purchased their
own houses. Most of the residents of this camp came to Delhi in
January 1990. It was in the month of April that the community hall or
baraat ghar was allotted to them. Monsoon set in, by the months of
July-August and the ceiling of the camp collapsed. The residents had
to then sleep in the verandah and many stayed awake at night as
there was no place to sleep. There were eight rooms downstairs, two
rooms upstairs and three halls. The rooms had two families each.
There were six families in two of the halls and eight in the third. In
the halls, the' families used bed-sheets to create separate spaces for
each family. The then chief minister of Delhi Mr. Khurana on seeing
this asked the NDMC(New Delhi Municipal Corporation) to built walls
within a week. The bed sheets were replaced by half walls which
divided the community hall into semi- apartment spaces g1vmg
providing the barest minimum privacy to the families and the huge
hall was divided into small rooms. This arrangement however did not
provide any privacy to the family members within the family, as the
people had no privacy while sleeping. And this period saw a drop in
the birth rates and rise in the divorces among the Kashmiri Pandits.
Following which new rooms were built and the kitchens we~e built
much later. Each camp has its own District Collector (Earlier all the
camps had only one District Collector that was at Tis Hazari). Later on
each of the nine camps were allotted their own District Collector from
whom they could collect ration and money and also address their
problems.
174
It was decided that the camp should have a representative. The first
camp commandment was a certain Mr. Arun Kaul. The elders would
choose the camp commandment. Kaul quit as the camp
representative when he got a job. Mr. Triloknath became the camp
commandment. AccOJ;ding to him, today the camp commandment
does not have the same importance as before. This was because the
people are not as helpless as before. The residents were earlier
unemployed, which was now no longer the case, and the government
is helping them, in whatever limited fashion it can. Thus, the
dependence of the residents on the camp commandment has
decreased. Now the duties revolve around
• ration - on the type and quality of cereal supplied by the
government
• registration of the people in the camp
• Building maintenance - cleanliness, electrical fittings etc.
When the Pandits had just arrived in the camp, they had hardly any
possessions. Many organizations had come asking what they needed
and some had come with some old clothes. The Pandits had to wear
second hand clothes, as many did not more than more than one pair
of clothes. They did not even have bedsheets, which meant that they
had to sleep on stone pavements or on cement flooring. One of the
respondents remarked that in the summer months it was actually
pleasant to sleep directly on the floor. Later on, the government gave
them a mattress and a bed-sheet which was not adequate as the
entire family could not sleep on one mattress. The government also
granted a stove along with kerosene and two utensils.
The Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party (B.J.P) had come with
milk powder, vegetables and bread for the children. They also got
some blankets and extra mattresses. A monthly allowance was paid to
them in the beginning it was Rs. 500 j- every month, this amount has
175
now been increased to Rs. 3400/-.( when I went to the camp first it
was Rs 2400/- by the end of the year it was increased to Rs3400/).
The ~atch was that the increased amount would be given to those who
would take up the flats built by the Government at Dwarka.( see
conclusion).
For the past five years the Delhi government is bearing the cost of the
expenditure on the Pandits. The government allotted some space to
the Pandits to open shops. As they did not have money for capital,
they collaborated ~ith those who could raise the necessary capital. . '
However, they were cheated in the process. 'It is important to note
that the Kashmiri migrants receive financial help and , material
assistance from the government of Delhi and they complain of total
apathy from the government of their home state, who they feel wants
to break off all connection with the Hindus.
The Pandits had to buy items, which they had never-used in Kashmir.
Let us look at some examples. One such item was a necessity- the
refrigerator. In Kashmir bec,ause ofcthe climatic conditions, there was
no necessity of a refrigerator. However, the Delhi scorching summer
months makes the refrigerator essential. Another habit they had to do
away with was the method of washing clothes. In Kashmir, the women
used to carry the dirty clothes to the streams and wash it there. In
Delhi, both inside and outside the camp, this was not possible. Some
of the well off families had purchased washing machines. After -coming
to Delhi, here we refer to the camp; the Pandits had to buy steel
almirahs. In their homes in Kashmir, they used to have built in '
wooden almirahs. On coming to the camp, the Pandits had to get used
to the idea of a movable almirahs.
The conversations with the Kashmiri Pandits were based on the semi
structured questionnaire mentioned in the fourth chapter, which
allowed for a free and unrestricted flow of information. The Pandits in
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the camp commented that so far the people who had come to their
camps mostly talked about what had transpired in Kashmir, the
reasons behind the migration and the steps being taken by the
government and the Pandits to improve the situation. The Pandits
especially -the older ones were quite eager to talk about the topics on
which information was sought as they felt no one .had ever bothered to
find out about these things which were of vital importance to the
survival of their cultural identity. There was a certain amount of.
disillusionment on their part too as many people had come and
spoken to them but nobody made an effort to change the situation
and students like me just got the required information and never
came back.
Nevertheless, they were eager to talk about their culture, as they
believed it to be different and superior to the culture in which they
found themselves now. The older generation was nostalgic about their
life in Kashmir, and at the mention of their native land tears would
well up in their eyes. They were nostalgic not so much about their lost
prosperity as they were about thei~ land form whose womb they were
violently torn apart, the smells of the nature, and the sights of the
seasons and the loss of friends and families still fresh in their
memories as if they had happened yesterday, and not a decade and a
half ago. The fading memories of the older generation still remain
sharp where Kashmir is concemed.
' In the following pages the vanous aspects of study will discussed
individually. This will be based on what Madan had to say about the
Kashmiri way of life about forty years ago and what the respondents
, have to say today. It was not possible to include every conversation
held on every topic; as a result the ones quoted are those of outmost
relevance and importance. Effort will be made to distinguish between
the changes brought about by due to the natural course of time and
those by forced migration. This is essential as we are concerned with
177
the effect of forced migration on culture and clubbing together the
changes bought about over a period of time by different causes will
defeat the purpose of the research.
The discussion shall begin with the changes in occupational pattern
of the Pandits after their migration to Delhi. This is because the prime
concern of any individual is to find employment in order to. sustain
himself and hisjher family. Let us now begin with the maih section of
not only the chapter but of the thesis itself.
OCCUPATION
Occupation is one of outmost concern to any person as everything
else- educ?.tion, cultural pursuits; marriage is directly or indirectly
linked t() it. It is essential to first establish the employment options
which were available to the Kashmiri Pandits in Kashmir and then
move on to the changes that have occurred after the migration to
Delhi.
In Kashmir, agriculture is the backbone of the state's economy.
Kashmir is essentially rural and eighty percent of the population
depends on agriculture for their living. While rice is the staple food of
Kashmir; wheat, rice maize, barley is the staple food of the people in
the Jammu region. The Kashmiris also grew almonds, apples, pear,
walnuts, cherry and saffron and exported out of the state and
country. Naturally the Pandits could not pursue this occupation on
their migration and it also meant that they had to leave behind their
main asset- their land.
Madan writes about the occupation of the Pandits in Kashmir:
The hall mark of an aristocratic Pandit family is that
none of its living male members or ancestors bas ever
engaged in manual labour. However there are many who
178
cultivate their own land become tenants to other Pandits
or migrate to the city of Srinagar as cooks and domestic
servants. In Srinagar the contempt for manual labour is
more general and this for three reasons: firstly,
appointment to government servants has been as it were,
the prerogative of the Pandits so much so that it has been
accepted as their traditional occupation for census
purposes. Secondly, menial and domestic service is
provided to city dwelling Pandits by rural Pandits who,
driven by economic need, do not mind engaging in
manuallabou'r away from their homes. Thirdly, there is
of course, no cultivation of land in the city except by
vegetable gardeners who are invariably Muslims. City
dwelling Pandits regard themselves as superior to their
rural brethren with whom manual labour is associated.
Salaried jobs are the main source of income for urban
Pandits. (1989: 21)
Forced migration meant that the Pandits lost their means of
employment- some temporarily; some permanently. It is interesting to
see what occupations/jobs the Pandits took up after coming to the
camp. The professionally qualified class - doctors, engineers etc found
it easier top get a job. The_ agriculturists were the real sufferers, as
they could not find a job, which suited them. It is interesting to see
whether desperation led to the Pandits taking up jobs that they other
wise would not have and how this would have fitted in with the
ritualistic notions of purity and pollution which the Kashmiri Pandits
so dearly hold.
The camp commander spoke at length on this issue as he knew the
details of the work the people in the camp were doing and also their
background in Kashmir. This comparison was necessary to determine
179
the change in the occupational status and loss of income, if any,
among the Pandits.
The respondent was very emphatic about the type of jobs the Pandits
could not take up, however desperate he j she was.
No Kashmiri Hindu will have anything to do with
. occupations connected with meat/ fish business, <?leaning,
and leather. These are Mussalman occupations. Kitne bhi
neech ho yea nahin karenge.( even the lowest of Hindu will
not do this).
Most of the Hindus were into agriculture or government
service. The main occupation of the Brahmin is to study,
teach or do servke; very few venture into business. The
main issue was that the Pandits used to own most of the
land while· the Muslims had, almost no land. Sheikh
Abdullah bought in the Land Ceiling Act whereby anybody
owning more than a hundred kinal of land had to give it
away. This land went to the Muslims who were landless. As
the level of education increased among the Muslims, they
realized the economic differences between the Pandits and
the Muslims.
Similar views were expressed by another respondent: \ .
The government has not helped at all. Earlier it gave us five
hundred rupees. We registered because we thought
something would be done about our property, but nothing
was done. It has been occupied or burnt. They (Muslims)
are using our land and living off it. The locals are helping
the militants. We have managed so far. Now we have
accumulated many things in these sixteen years. We had to
180
buy a television set for the children as they do not eat
without watching cartoons. The government is asking us to
buy flats at Dwarka. If we had the money, we would have
done so sixteen years ago when it was cheaper.
There are almost no factories in Kashmir and so private enterprises
are very few in number. It .is because of this that the people coveted
government jobs. A few Pandits did own pashmina factories. One of
the respondent said, "My sister-in-law used to own a pashmina
factory and it was a lucrative business. Thanks to the laws of Sheikh
Abdullah, the Muslims took over the factory. My sister-in- law had to
go back to agriculture." Many were not even graduates, but used to
work for the Jammu and Kashmir government. (See the table:
Appendix). Enquiries about the kind of government jobs non
. graduates would get, revealed that these people would get 'babu jobs'
i.e. clerical posts.
In the camp, absence of employment opportunities was a big problem.
There were young and middle aged people who found themselves
sitting idle in the camp and with no hope of employment. Delhi is over
populated and competition for jobs is fierce. Into this environment,
came in Kashmiri Pandits, many of whom were not ql;lalified enough.
In Kashmir even a matric (class ten) pass could find a job as a clerk
and Bachelor of Arts .was considered a high qualification. In Delhi,
these qualifications were highly inadequate. Many took up jobs for
eight hundred rupees to gain some work experience. Some men were
cheated too; they were paid fifteen hundred rupees for a job for which
others got ten thousand rupees (as per the respondents). In some
camps, doctors took up jobs for which they were a paltry sum of five
hundred rupees.
A few lucky ones employed in the government service in Jammu and
Kashmir got a transfer to Jammu or Delhi and continued with their
181
old jobs. Since the private enterprise scenario in Delhi offered jobs,
more easily many - both men and women took up employment in the
private sector. None of them in high posts, they were mostly in clerical
or supervision kind of jobs. The number of such people was about
seven or eight in the camp. The ladies took up such jobs as they could
not do manual labour. As time went by the salary increased to about
ten thousand rupees. As the financial condition of the people
improved they left the camp.
Those in the camp at present, on an average, have a salary of about
three thousand rupees a month. One particular respondent used to
work as a medical representative in Kashmir but has been /
unemployed ever since he migrated to Delhi. He said that the Pandits
had requested the home minister and the Prime Minister for
employment but there was no help. The government said that all the
unemployed Pandits could not be accommodated in the government
services. As a result, the Pandits had to do everything on their own.
Many sold their properties and used the money for education. He (the
medical representative) further said:
I was a badshaah in my village, albeit without a crown. Now
I have become a beggar. I had land, income and low
expenditure. I had t~o three storied house and a two storied
cowshed. Each house had about twelve rooms. I had
invested a lot of money in the land but all that has gone
waste. I have seen everything- comfort and hardship. I have
stayed hurigry for three days when I first came to Delhi, as I
did not have a single penny. All my money is tied up in the
post office. I was coming back from the fields when
somebody told me that trouble had broken out. I locked up
my house; left my cows in the care of my neighbours. I do
not know what happened after that. The cows must have
been given to the butchers. Our property is not being looked
182
after nor can we get it sold so that we can get on with our
lives. I has walnut trees, the annual income from each tree is
about Rs 5000/- toRs 6000/'-. They take about 10 years to
bear fruit but can last for about 200 years. They do not
require much maintenance. Eighteen walnut trees have been
cut by a Muslim who used to work in my field. This has
caused loss of about Rs.60, 000/-. He must have sold it, as
the wood is very strong and can be used to make good
furniture. I then to the District Collector but no action was
taken. I then approached the Additional Commissioner who
took action. One has to take permission to cut the walnut
trees. Now the case is going on in the court. Those who are
now in possession of the land are, earning around six
thousand per month. Sometimes they send u~ an account of
the income and expenditure. It has also happened that some
have shown false papers of sale of land. The Pandits wrote
complaint letters regarding such cases to the Prime Minister
but to no avail.
The above-mentioned respondent had come to the camp with his
parents. However, his father could adjust as he had traveled
extensively, but his mother found it very difficult to adjust. Both died
in the camp. His, sister and her husband had also come to the camp.
The brother-in law was a tailor who had learnt his skill in Lahore.
However, he expired barely after six months after coming to the camp.
My brother-in law could not bear the shock of leaving his
home and living in the camp. Since we had to stay in the
hall and he had two young daughters he would stay awake
the whole night guarding them. He would make sure that
they were covered properly. One day he had gone out and
met with an accident. He had died by the time we reached
the hospital. We were told that he was dazed and was
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unmindful on the road. About six or seven people have died
of shock.
Another respondent said that:
We were zamindars (landowners) and we had so much that
there was no need for us to work for generations. It was
just that we wanted to work. My husband was in
government service., The Hindu - Muslim crisis has been
going on since 194 7. This was mainly because the Muslims
do not see themselves as Indians. The Kashmiri Pandits
found it difficult to get jobs, especially jobs with the State
government. We had a hotel in Srinagar, but it was burnt
down, When we came to the camp, I got a job in a private
firm. However, I found it difficult to adjust to the nine to
five .routine. Meanwhile the government had started giving
rations. There was a sewing centre and I used to sew for
people inside and outside the camp. I thought that when
the young people in the camp are not getting a job how I
can think about myself. My husband got his job transferred
to Jammu for sometime. Now he is working for an M.L.A.
(Member of the Legislative Assembly).My son could not
continue his studies. He could not reconcile to this life and
discontinued studies after class XII. We tried to get him
some jobs but nothing interests him. Now he does odd jobs.
He is married now and his wife works in a private firm. My
daughter has started an organization in Jammu. We
Kashmiris want our daughters and daughters-in- law to
work, we do not want them to sit at home. I am ready to
look after my grandchildren while they work.
It was clear that tho~e from an agricultural background found it
difficult to get jobs and hence took up low paying jobs. They took up
184
jobs in hotels, in shops and in factories. At one level, it was not only
the question of money but some activity to keep them occupied so
that their minds would not descend into the chaos of hopelessness.
Depression was a natural consequence of unemployment. The
comfortable life in the Valley seemed a distant dream, and with no
end in sight to the present ordeal, the Pandits tried to make the best
of the situation. The positive point being that for those who had
adequate qualifications could settle down - even though it took about
three years. The reduced income has definitely led to changed
lifestyles. This has had its effects on the education of the children and
living standards. They are forced to live in the cramped quarters in
the camp, as they cannot afford to rent a house outside. They have
the necessities like a television, refrigerator and some even a washing
machine, it has taken the Pandits about ten years of ceaseless
struggle to reach !his stage.
As one respondent pointed out that:
In the beginning we were concerned only with our
immediate survival in a new place and so men and
women alike were taking up any job that they could.
We were not bothered about our· culture. In fact,
celebrations were kept to the , minimum and the
marriages had become a very brief affair. Then as time
went by and our situation improved we realized that
our children do not know anything about our culture.
It is then we made a concerted effort to revive our
customs so that our future generations do not remain
ignorant about our culture.
From the above quote it becomes clear that had the Pandits not been
able to gain some kind of financial sec~rity then they would have lost
their customs and rituals, which would have been given up due to the
185
. demands they would make financially. The loss of livelihood IS not
~asy to deal with. For a farmer his entire routine is disrupted. Like a
respondent, who is unemployed now, put it:
In Kashmir whether it is snowing or not we have to
get up early and go to the fields , see that the workers
are doing their work , look after the cattle. Then make
plans about harvesting, selling and keeping some for
household use. By the time we come back it is evening
and by eight we go off to sleep. But now we can get up
late and then sit here (in the camp) whole day and talk
to people like you who sometimes come here. I watch
television the whole day because of which my Hindi ' has improved. (Laughs) I miss my fields, fresh air and
the life I had. Farmers cannot adjust to office work, it
is difficult for them.
The Kashmiris from the rural areas wa:nt to go back to agriculture in
case they can go back to Kashmir. They have not been able to adjust
to the concept of a nine-to-five job. A private sector job does not hold
the same charm as a government job. Given a choice the Pandits
would go back to their old way of life.
Thus we can conclude that occupational pattern has undergone
tremendous change. The Pandits belonging to the agricultural class
have been the worst sufferers. Due to forced migration they have lost
their livelihood and from a life of ease and comfort are trying to make \
ends meet. Previous studies on forced migration (refer to chapter two)
show that loss of livelihood is the most serious issue facing the
migrants. Loss of livelihood in case of men leads to changing roles in
the family. The women were seen to have taking up economic
responsibility. This led to marital discord, depression and many other
related problems. In the case of the Pandits there were cases of
186
women taking up work but the men still were the mam earmng
members. There was discontent am:ong the migrants due to iack of
employment opportunities. They also found it difficult to adjust to the
loss of status and space in their new surroundings. The first casualty
of forced migration in this case as in most cases was employment.
Today the situation has improved but is nowhere near to what it was
in Kashmir. For the professionally qualified- doctors, engineers etc the_
change has not been that drastic as after an initial phase of struggle
they settled· in . The Kashmiri Pandits belonging to the rural areas·
have been the main sufferers.
The next section deals with the aspect synonymous with the term -
Pandit;. it defines who. the Pandits are. Articles, literature on the
Pandits and by the Pandits some of which have been referred to in
this thesis shows the pride the Pandits have in their ancestry,
knowledge and achievements.
EDUCATION
Education is of pnme importance. to the Pandits. If we recall a
previous conversation, a respondent said clearly, "The main work of a
Pandit is to study and teach (padhna and padhana)." The children in
Kashmir were not taught instruments, singing, dancing or fine arts.
They were only required to study, even if they were to take up
agriculture. Agricultural courses were fairly common in Kashmir and
taken up by some. There was one such person in the camp who was
qualified in such a course. Thus, finding out the levels of education in
the camp now and before the migration occurred was important to
further analyse the situation .
. Madan writes:
Not only is literacy more widespread in Srinagar then in
villages but college education and technical training
also have been confined , to urban Pandits. In· the
187
villages female literacy is almost absent whereas in the
city many women students attend schools and colleges
and even go out of Kashmir for higher education. The
city women have greatly improved their position and
there are fewer restrictions of social intercourse on
women in Srinagar than in our villages. ( 1989: 22)
He also writes that the Pandits emphasis on education started
after they came back during the rule of Zain-ul-Abidin (refer
to chapter three on history of Kashmir).
It was during the rule of Zain-Ul-Abidin's that Pandit
society evolved an internal differentiation which has by
now rigidly set into two fold division after the king had
restored confidence among the Brahmans they felt the
need for equipping themselves for the new opportunities
that might be offered to them and for any emergency
that might be offered to them and for any emergency
that might arise in future. Accordingly they turned
increasingly to the study of Persian, the court language
and sought work as officials, translators and clerks in
the government.
When asked about the level education among the Kashmir Pandits )
and educational system in the villages, one respondent said:
In Kashmir, especially in the villages, the teachers used to
be Muslims. They would teach the Islamic religious texts to
both Muslims and Hindus. They would not teach Hindi,
instead the emphasis was on Persian and Arabic. There
were some practical courses on agriculture. The Hindu
parents were not happy with this and would tell their
children not to be a part of these teachings. The children
188
from Kashmir faced problems m Delhi as there was no
Arabic or Urdu.
A respondent whose daughter used to study in Srinagar said that:
The cities were different as they had better schools and
colleges, many of which were run by missionaries. The city
children had thus a better standard of education. The
children from the village found it difficult to compete with
the city children. The latter would score about 99% in
exams and were very competitive. The villagers did not
want to send their children to cities as they were
apprehensive about the city life and the, influence it would
have on the children. They wanted to educate the children,
but the colleges were in cities and there was no
conveyance. Some stayed with relatives, some stayed in
rented rooms. They had to cook and study. They could not
eat outside, as the Muslims owned most of the hotels. We
had taught them not to eat things touched by others
(Muslims).
In the camp, the people have three main concerns - food, shelter and
education of children. The schools were given orders that the Pandits
were to be given admission immediately irrespective of the time. This
was in regard to the Central Schools- Kendriya Vidyalaya. The families
were exempted from paying fees for about three years. The admissions
were stopped after three years and the Pandits had to again fight for
such admissions to be continued. Apart from this another problem
stated by a respondent was, "We find it difficult to teach our children
even though we have studied the same things. We did not have the
system of tuitions in Kashmir."
189
The respondents said that the minimum level of education of a person
in Kashmir was graduation- B.A/B.Sc and that nobody was less then
a graduate. But closer scrutiny of the particulars of the people in the
camp revealed that very few were graduates. In fact, the children who
had grown up in the camp were graduates while many men arid
women who had studied in Kashmir had studied up to class ten or
twelve. One reason given for the lack of education was the distance of
the educational institutes from the village and secondly the outbreak
of militancy which made it difficult for students - especially girls to
travel. Thus, a certain amount of nostalgia and pride had coloured
their vision about their past, making it seem better than it was.
A respondent explained:
There was 95% reservation for the Muslims and the
remaining 5% was for us. The Governor of Jammu and
Kashmir, Jag Mohan, said that he would give jobs only
according to merit. It was at that time that many Kashmiri
Pandits had benefited as they fared much better in the
competitive examinations. We never demanded anything,
never agitated against the reservation. We were happy with
what we had. The Muslims were not happy. They were not
good at studies and used to waste their time. Only the elite
used to study.
The girls in Kashmir faced different kinds of problems, in addition to
what already existed. A lady respondent who was a graduate and the
most educated woman of in her age group (50-60) in the camp
explained:
Most people liked to keep the girls at home. My daughter
used to like to play badminton and was good at it. She
used to play in the college. The teachers called me and
asked me to tell her to stop playing, as her partners were
190
boys. She participated in tournaments after coming here.
The girls could not many things in Kashmiri because of the
Muslims. Here the children have lot of freedom they join
dance, swimming and judo classes. Parents encourage
them as much they can, depending on their financial
resources.
The decisions regarding education were taken by the elders
in the family. I wanted to study science but there were only
boys in the class. My father's elder brother went and
cancelled my admission saying how I will sit with boys. The
principal said that she is a bold girl she can manage; we
will send her to study medicine. Still he did not listen.
Things started changing before migration after my
generation. Girls from a village would move out in groups
as it was thought safer. Here again people have started
living individualistic lives. Nobody tells anything as they
fear competition. The fear of the society ~topped us from
doing many things~ in that respect cities are better.
When asked whether they felt that the level of education had gone
down among the Pandits. One of the respondents said that:
The level of education has definitely gone down. The main
point is that the interest in education is no longer there.
There is something in the water, food, environment here
(Delhi) that reduces interest in studying. In Kashmir when
a child would wake up in the morning and go with his
father to wash his face he would recite the . mantras and
chants. Here children do not want to bathe so leaming is a
distant dream.
191
Everybody wants the best for their children but it depends
on karma. The Kashmiri Pandits who had settled in Delhi
earlier, (before the phase of forced migration), their children
are doing much better whether it is government services or
private jobs. They recommend their own relatives for jobs.
Now a days training (computer, medical) has 1 become
common. Some people give ten thousand rupees and send
their children for training. We do not have money to send
our children for the training. The plum jobs go to the
Pandits who migrated during the partition period and they
stay mostly in Pamposh region in Delhi. Nobody thinks
about us. You are seeing our condition, the Pandits outside
the camp have helped us. The children have suffered a lot
in the camps, the environment here has spoilt them.
Our children search for jobs in the newspapers and apply
for them. They take up even low paid jobs so that they can
see the world and gain some work experience. In the camp,
many engineers took up five hundred rupees jobs as they
were not getting better jobs. Many feel that if they keep a
Pandit he will perform better than others. This is the
reason why many ministers do not want a Kashmiri Pandit
to contest elections, as they fear that he will become the
prime mip.ister.
In fact the above respondent's nephews were· sent to Jammu to
continue their studies after a year as they were not doing well m
Delhi. The parents thought that Jammu being nearer to Kashmir
would have a better influence on the young minds than Delhi.
In the camp, many continued their education privately. Some took up
jobs as shopkeeper's assistants for a salary of five hundred rupees, in
spite of being graduates. Though the Pandits complained about the
192
declining level of education in their community in the camps, it is
clear that the children were getting more holistic education than they
would have in the villages of Kashmir. They were learning sports, fine
arts and other things, which they were not encouraged to in Kashmir.
Life is less restricted for the student here. But this is one area which
could have changed with time. Now we don't know what would have
happened, may be the educational system would have improved I
anyways with time. As of now, we can sa~ely say that the children,' .
especially girls, in the camp were receiving better education than they
would have in the villages.
If we look at what Madan had written about education in Kashmir
then we can say that girls have benefited from the migration, as there
was severe gender based discrimination in Kashmir. Madan writes:
When children reach the age of five or six, their formal
instructions begins. Whereas the girls stay at home and
acquire various domestic skills by assisting older
women of ihe household at their chores, boys are sent
to school involves expenditure on books, school
uniforms etc. Many informants suggested that since
nubile young girls did not move around much or freely
in the villages it was not necessary for them to have
many changes of clothes as it was their brothers who
attended school and occasionally went to town. In brief,
Pandits admit of discrimination against girls and always
try to justify it but do not agree that they love their
daughters le'ss than their sons.
On their part the girls generally behave as if they are
hardly aware of discrimination against themselves,
training then from early childhood teaches them not
193
only to accept it as normal and proper but also be
solicitous of the welfare of their brothers. ( 1989:69)
\
In the camp the girls and boys went to schools. The parents said that
the girls now wanted to learn dancing, painting etc as it was the norm
in the schools.
One parent said:
In Kashmir we used to go to school only for studying
but here (Delhi) there are so many extra curricular
activities and our children insist on learning dancing or
painting. Since their class mates learn we also want our
children to be as good as them. We have to spend extra
money but what can we do? If they don't learn they will
lag behind. My daughter wants to be a doctor when she
grows up,( the child was in class five). I hope I have the
money for her higher education. It is necessary that she
becomes something in life.
We can wonder, had the same family stayed in rural Kashmir whether
they would have thought in the same manner. The daughter would
not have got the opportunity to pursue artistic or creative pursuits.
Probably her education would have been hampered by the distance of
educational institutes from her home. She might also have been at
home helping her mother look after her brother.
The problem was with higher education. The parents could not afford
the more expensive courses and the children were veering towards
short courses, which would give immediate employment. There were
few in the camp who had what was can be termed as 'good education
or high posts.' From that perspective the education level had gone
down as the number of years spent on education had reduced. There
have been only three engineers from the camp and no doctors. A
194
quick look at the table with the details on the people in the camp in
the appendix 4 shows that most children in the camp are graduates
and some took up hotel management and two took up computers as it
could give them clerical jobs. The migrants who came in 1990 could
not afford the specialised courses.
Today the people in the camp talk of educating their children and
many hope that they will be able to sell their property in Kashmir and
use the money for their children's education. The emphasis is on, a
social mobility for the future generations. In Kashmir societal
pressure, norms and the distance from educational institutes
discouraged girls from pursuing higher education. In Delhi, the only
problem is the monetary one, now the -Pandits have the best
educational institutes and distance is not a factor, but money is. They
want the best for the children but lack resources. Nevertheless the
situation is better than before. The children who had come 16 years '
ago had problems with admission and mon~y; today the parents are
planning for the future so that the children can pursue higher
studies.
Let us now move on to the political orientations of the Pandits before
and after migration. The Pandits have been associated with the
congress more so because Nehru was Pandit and many feel that they
have the potential to carry on his legacy. Today things have changed
due to forced migration; the following section will dwell on this issue.
POLITICAL ORIENTATION
Knowledge about the political affiliation of the Pandits was important
to help in determining their attitude towards the Muslims. The oft
repeated 'Kashmiriyat' has lead to the common assumption of close
relations between the Hindus and Muslims in the Valley; that a
shared historical and cultural heritage meant shared lives and spaces.
195
The study revealed that this was not the case. The relations between
the two communities were barely cordial. The calm was just surface
level. There was simmering anger, frustration on both sides because
of economic disparity.
The Pandits owned most of the land and plum jobs. The Muslims were
agricultural workers in their field and not very educated. The- class
divides in terms of landholdings and the historically created power
structures lead to a society simmering with discontent. There must
have been exploitation at the hands of the Pandit landowners that
aggravated the situation. Madan writes "No Pandit would take food
cooked by Muslims at least not openly. In Srinagar many young
Pandits who attend college or work in offices often eat and drink at
Muslim restaurants and make no secret of it." ( Madan, 1989 : 22)
However, the Pandits were vocal about how they were generous with
their grain and money. One such (ex) landowner said:
We used to give grains (to the Muslims) as we used to have
a lot of surplus. We never differentiated between our
children and theirs. They were not very interested in
studying but we used to urge them to send their children to
school. We have financed the education of many Muslim
children. Look, what we got in return. These children got
educated, instigated others against us. Many took up arms,
joined the terrorists and turned us out of out homes.
Another respondent on the question of communal identities said:
We used to vote for the National Conference in Kashmir. It
used to work well. Nobody thought in terms of Muslims,
Sikh or Hindus. Until 1984, this kind of thinking was there
196
but after that news about militant activities started coming
in and the atmosphere changed.
Yet another lady respondent elaborated:
We were Congress supporters. We were at the receiving end
of many abuses from the people (Muslims) there. The
Congress did not help us after migration. We got a lot of
help from the B.J.P, so we developed an inclination towards
them. They did not give us monetary help but at least they
helped us organize. the camp. Some of their ministers came
regularly to the camp, where as the Congress hardly paid
any attention to us. Sheila Kaul came, gave us five hundred
each and left. Rajiv' Gandhi is from our khandaan but he
too did not help us. Sonia Gandhi rushes to the Muslims at
the first instance. Now nobody comes at all. We had
supported them as Hindus.
We have no leanings towards Bajrang Dal or the RSS. We
were busy with our own problems. We wanted that our
children should get employment in the govemment sector.
We wanted accommodation too. Since I was running
around meeting the politicians, they (B.J.P) used to call me
for meetings. My husband did not let me continue.
At this point, the husband intervened and explained:
She is too honest to be a politician; she does not have the
temperament. There was a 'Kashmir Bachao' meeting
organized by the B.J.P. and Khurana was making a speech
about saving Kashmir. My wife told him when you cannot
save us how will you save Kashmir. The politician was
197
offended. Then I told her you should not be a part of all
this, you are not suited for this.
The wife then continued:
I just took the mike and told Khurana- we (Pandits) have
been here for a month and we have nothing. You have not )
been able to save two hundred people, how will you save
Kashmir. I was very angry. I never met them after this
incident.
I asked her whether there was any resentment towards the
Muslims earlier. She replied quite candidly:
Why do we hate the Muslims? That is because the very
thing (cow) that we worshipped, called mother was cut and
eaten by them. They are heartless and are totally against
us. They do not want us to live in Kashmir .They do not eat
with us as they consider us dirty. The Muslims here do not
think like that, in fact they take food from us. We consider
the Muslims dirty as they do not use soap or mitti for
washing hands.
One respondent vehemently stated:
The Hindus are not united, this is true across the country.
We are such ~kammenas'. Our gods are the same but we do
not support each other. The Muslims on the other hand,
have one god Allah. You just have to say Allah 0 Akbar and
the whole community will stand up together. The Hindus
have not leamt their lesson even now, we are still the
same. The Muslims (in Kashmir) know where we are (in the
refugees' camps). If anybody says anything, I will tell them
198
every child being born in Kashmir is a terrorist. They
(Muslims) have. terrorism in their blood.
If we go back to Madan's work for a while we see that he too writes on
the lack of unity of among the Pandits:
Correlated with the class division is the absence of a
strongly developed sense of solidarity among the
Pandits. They themselves complain about this,
bewailing the absence of leaders who would win the
confidence and respect all of them. Economic
interdependence among the Pandits is not great. Their
religion is of the personal type, with only a weakly
developed collective aspect; there are no collective
rituals among them requiring the participation of all or
most of them. Two yearly feasts, one in honour of the
patron goddess of the village and the other in
commemoration of its founder, are the only occasiOns
when a great number (but not all) of the Pandits of the
village come together. Various institutions like
marriages and funeral feasts associated with Pandits
kinship are to employ Nadel's terms 'parallel' rather
than 'associative' ; they focus on the divisions that exist
between kin and non-kin in the village.
An instance of lack of solidarity among the Kashmiri
Pandits may be seen in their attitude to the recent
attitude to the recent political and economic changes in
the State. These changes have had, among other
consequences, the effect of endangering the economic
solvency of the Pandits. All households that owned more
than 23 acres have lost the land exceeding the limit to
their tenants; the tenant's share in agricultural produce
199
has been raised, benefiting the Muslims more than the
Pandits, because not many Pandits have been tenants;
and government jobs have been thrown ope:n to the
Muslims on a favoured treatment basis. In the face of
the rising economic and political power of the Muslims,
they are divided into two opinion groups; those who
want to cooperate with the Muslims and those who
want to seek protection from the government as a
religious minority. They are an unorganized leaderless
group, proud about their past, confused about their
present and uncertain . about their future. (Madan,
1989: 37-38)
Continuing from the previous conversation, warming up to the topic
the respondent further elaborated:
During an India-Pakistan match, if India won then they
would throw stones at us. In case then Pakistan won then
too they would throw stones us, taunting us. They used to
shout slogans in front of our houses. Individual relations
were good. After all nobody calls the blind, blind on his
face. I remember when Mohammad Dar of the congress
won the elections from our village with the help of Kashmiri
Pandits, the Muslim villagers took out a rally against us.
The very next day, they visited our homes as friends. What
can one do? You cannot ill treat a guest.
These fights, migration is nothing new. In 1951, there were
only eleven Kashmiri Pandits in the village. Those who "
stayed were converted, many killed and some fled to the
villages. Nobody has come to us. The President of the
country rushed to Gujarat (after the riots) but not to us.
Nobody is increasing our relief (amount of money given the I
200
people m the camp); nobody is asking us what we want.
Our death would have been better. The slogan the Muslim
chanted was, "We want a Kashmir without the (Pandit)
men, with the (Pandit) women. Meaning they would marry
the women who would be converted and thus the future
generations would be Muslims.
One respondent said:
Now we have a Muslim president and yet the Muslims still
talk about being the minority. The Hindu rajas were the
original rulers. The Dogra king- Mahahraja Pratap Singh
also supported the Hindus. It was after 194 7, after Hari
Singh came to power that everything changed. It is because
of him that this has happened. Ghar ka badaa hi murkh ho
jai to sab kharab ho jaata hai. (when the elder of the house
acts foolishly then everything goes wrong). When we came
we hardly had any money or clothes. I had to sleep with my
young daughter in people's verandah. Once she had high
fever and she was sleeping on the stone flooring. After that,
she had a permanent back problem. Nobody came to help
us. We left Kashmir in about January /February and had
to spend days in stations, temples and verandahs. No
political party helped us. It was only in April that we got a
camp. We met councilors, ministers but to no avail.
Meanwhile food had become a problem. We started eating
at langars(food given to the poor at gurudwaras). We were
ashamed and used to hide our face but what could we do?
It was then we were told that registrations were taking
place and rations vyere being distributed. A rally by the
B.J.P at Pant Marg(road) helped in getting the camp.
When asked whether in the initial years of living in the camp there
was any desire to join organizations like the RSS, one respondent
201
replied, "Initially many young men wanted to join the Shiv Sena. As
they got jobs, they forgot about all this. The next obvious question
was why the Shiv Sena. The reply was "because they make a direct
attack on the Muslims. We did not even know about the RSS." When
asked, after coming to Delhi they must have read about the RSS in
the newspapers. He replied, "Even then we could not grasp what it
was about exactly. Why should we go to someone we do not know
about. They did not come to talk to us so why should we go to them.
Unlog apne jegah pe the aur hum apne jegah pe." (They were in their
world and we were in ours).
He further added:
In Kashmir the Jan Sangh, an earlier version of the Shiv
Sena was very popular. There were several branches of
the Jan Sangh in Kashmir. Many young men used to
join it and get up in the morning and go for the
meetings. ·Many times, they would be takeri to the jail
and beaten up. The Jan Sangh, then became the Shiv
Sena, they worshipped the Trishul. The Muslims were
scared of the Jan Sanghi and would remark, "ye saala
Jan Sanghi hai, isko mara. (He is a Jan Sanghi, beat
him up)." This was the trend in the late nineteen fifties,
by the time militancy broke out the Jan Sanghis had
become too old to tackle the militants.
There were repeated references to Hindustan when asked to give their
opinion on whether Kashmir was a part of India or not. The
respondent answered that:
Since India was governing Kashmir we knew that it was
, a part of Hindustan. We were under the misconception
that we (Hindus and Muslims) were together. We never
202
thought that the mussalmans would go against us. The
then Governor of Jammu and Kashmir Mr. 'Jagmohan
told us in a meeting, "If you can keep a television at
home why not a gun. A young man in the crowd replied,
"Who will give us the license? Will the officers here or
you give the license? Police will start haunting our
houses; Muslim officers will not even listen to us.
Nobody will sell his or her gun to us. A retired army
officer who had a gun had to hand it over to a militant.
Jagmohan did not have any answer to this. (This
particular incident was repeated a number of times by
the respondent and each time a fresh sentence was
added).
With an increase in the level of education, the Muslim
youth became aware of the economic disparity between
the Muslims and the Pandits. They were incited against
doing any work for the Pandits. They were asked to do
jehad against the Kashmiri Pandits. They were told 'you
are ghulams (slaves), if you stop working for them they
(Pandits) will be forced to leave the land. The 'Land to
the Tillers' law also came in, which stated that hundred
kinal of land as the ceiling. In many cases, the excess
land was converted to cash and given away. Those who
did not comply with the law were imprisoned.
By 1986, things came out in the open, militancy spread like wild fire.
Temples were burnt; houses of Kashmiri Pandits were razed to the
ground and many Pandits were brutally murdered. We have discussed
this in detail in the chapter dealing with the history of Kashmir.
Though it is interesting to note that a few Kashmir Muslims in
Kashmir who reported that there were only one or two killings after
which the Pandits fled. Articles appeared in newspapers in Kashmir
203
which said that the Kashmiri Pandits were defaming the Kashmir
Muslims by blaming them for acts they have not committed. That it
was a matter of shame that a matter which could have been dealt at
home (state) has been taken to outsiders. These articles further asked
the Pandits to come back to their homes in Kashmir. On mentioning
these articles and the call for the Pandits to go back to Kashmir, one
respondent replied that this was bound to happen as Kashmir is now
getting international attention.
One respondent tried to explain the situation m Kashmir m the
following manner :
It was a war of the mussalman. What is jehad? It is to fight
for one's right, through peaceful protest and violence. It
does not mean 'snatch from others'. When militancy
started, we could not talk to anybody. We did not know
when we would we attacked. There are hardly any Hindus
now; militants are staying in their homes deserted by the
Pandits. Those who had young girls (daughters and
daughters in law) in their family were the first ones to
leave. Those who are there, 'unka dharam brasht ho gaya
hai'. (they have lost their religion) I just had a bag when I
left my home and came to Kashmir. Nobody could even get
the bank papers. I once told a Kashmiri Muslim "I don't
know whish militant outfits you belong to, who you are
getting help from. Every time there is talk of asking Pandits
to come back there is a bomb blast somewhere or killings.
You are getting money from the Government of India and
that of Jammu and Kashmir (J&K).You use the money to
spread vile things about the government and the Kashmir
Pandit."
204
When we came here, we were unemployed. The B.J.P
(Bharatiya Janata Party) govemment, which was in power,
gave the order that we should allowed to put up shops on
the footpath in certain areas. There was a change in
government and the Congress came to power. They then
cancelled the order.
As a consequence of all this red tapism the Pandits say, "We do not
believe in politics and have lost faith in politicians. All the political
parties rob the citizens. They do not think about the poor. Nobody
raises the question about the Kashmiri Pandits in the parliament.
Nobody says that the Kashmiris are sitting like beggars at your
doorstep." They feel that the media does not report the matter
accurately and so nobody knows· the truth about what is happening in
Kashmir. To top it the government is holding talks with the militants
who are killing people.
While talking about the celebration of Shiva-Ratri one respondent was -
telling about the use of steel pots instead of mud pots. She said that
this change had started in Kashmir itself. The reason she said was:
In 194 7, the Muslims started boycotting us. The potters did
not give us the mud pots, the washer men did not give our
clothes especially on the day of our festival. The ariti-Hindu
sentiments had started. We never thought that things
would come to this. Even after all the quarrels we would
still talk to each other, invite each other for weddings. We
never thought that we would have to leave our homes, so
much hatred would be there in their hearts for us.
In 1986, there was a programme to eliminate us but it got
leaked and things were bought under contn;>l. We did not
want to come but the situation was such that we had to
205
come. Pandits were being killed in daylight, some were
kidnapped and bodies never found. The ladies were unsafe
as they were being targeted. We could not even trust ,our
neighbours as they had joined hands with the militants.
We did not want to come and things were unbearable here
no shelter, food or clothes. Added to this was the heat ; our
skin broke out in rashes while in Jammu people were
dying.
There has been a definite change m the political affiliation of the
Pandits. They resent the 'callous' attitude of the Congress towards
their problems of unemployment and housing. The bitterness towards
the Muslims translated into support to the Bharatiya Jananta Party.
They wanted to support a party, which will not only help them but will
also speak against the Muslims. The initial years of unemployment
also aggravated the situation. The youth with a lot of idle time spent
its energy in venting its anger against the Muslims and joined the
Shiv Sena. They did not know about the RSS and hence did not join
it. This initial zeal fizzled out and as the men got jobs, the political
activities took a back seat.
Today, the Pandits express disillusionment with politics and
politicians. Politicians don't visit them anymore and there has been a
marginal improvement in their lifestyle from the initial days in the
camp. They did not express any desire to join politics to better their
lot, though there was this pretentious idea that every Kashmiri Pandit
is a potential Prime Minister. As one respondent put it, "the
politicians do not want to bring in Kashmiris (Pandits )into politics
because they know that he will be so good that he will really rise up
and will become the prime minister one day . This kind of jealousy
has led to the Pandits become ignored and are not allowed entry into
political parties". The Pandits on coming to Delhi were expecting
immediate; help from the Congress whom they had supported in
206
Kashmir, but with no help forthcoming their loyalties turned to
parties willing to ~elp them. The B.J .P with its anti - Muslim tirade
and pro-Pandit stance won over the Pandits to its side.
It is clear from the above conversations that the relations between the
two religious communities- Hindus and Muslims were far from what
had been projected by media, newspapers and articles. There was an
underlying hostility mostly based on economic issues. This is not to
say that all Muslims were poor, a large number espe'cially in the cities
were well to do. During my brief stay in Kashmir I spoke to a number
of Muslims in Srinagar belonging to the elite class. On asking them
about Kashmiri Pandits they admitted that very few were there in
Kashmir but the fault was laid squarely at the feet of the Pandits. Like
one of the young men remarked, "There were one or two killings and
the Pandits fled and created a ruckus. There were no such targeted
killings as reported in the media." The Pandits are hardly mentioned
and it almost seems as they never existed. It could be that so many
years have passed and those m Kashmir have their own set of
problems to deal with.
The Pandits faced disappointments due the inaction by government at
Kashmir and in Delhi. The Kashmiri Pandits do not constitute a
sizeable vote bank and their status as IDPs has gone unrecognized.
The Pandit perhaps on their part expected too much too soon -
instant government job, accommodation, education, subsidies etc.
some of these have been fulfilled but some have remained just
dreams. No doubt the Congress has lost out its loyal voters due to
negligence on their part and sixteen years of ordeal is a long period.
Though the Pandits regard the Gandhi family as part of their group
and estimate themselves highly with regards to political potential
there are no immediate plans of joining politics. They have not
transferred their unstinting loyalty to the B.J .P as the bitter
experiences have taught them that politicians are not trustworthy and
207
they will do something which is beneficial to them politically. In spite
of the negative memories about Muslims there has been no mass
movement towards the extreme right. Instead there is probably a
political apathy.
We shall now move on to what we can call the core of the culture of
the Pandits- aspects of marriage, festivals, cuisine, language and
dress. Q_ur discussion on culture in the second chapter talks about ,
transmission of culture from generation to. generation, socialization
being one of many means of transmitting culture, elements of culture.
Here we will be dealing with these aspects and more- has the Pandit
culture survived, role played by the family in preservation of culture, \
actual transmission of culture to the present generation. Bernadi
writes, "Identification and partnership of a culture allow for the
identification of members of any collectivity, group, family, people and
nation and make it possible to distinguish among each. of them."
(1977: 80). We will begin with first with marriage and try to trace the
changes that have come about due to a change in environment and
other conditions.
MARRIAGE
One of the main focuses of the thesis is the change in the marriage
rituals among the Kashmiri Pandits. In any culture of a community,
marriage occupies the central position. The marriage rituals vary not
only from region to region -in India but sometimes also along the lines
of caste and religion. Marriage rituals and customs often reveal the
gender bias and discrimination in a particular c9mmunity. Marriage
becomes the focal point at which all gendered discrimination
manifests itself.
208
Madan writes :
Although giving of a daughter in marriage is regarded
as a highly meritorious act, yet the absence of
daughters is not bewailed if a couple has sons. Unlike
sons who are the support of their parents in old age,
daughters are regarded as a heavy responsibility. They
are regarded as a burden as a huge amount of money
is needed to marry daughters into good families. There
. is an oft quoted Kashmir saying to the effect that a
daughter's birth makes even a philosophical man
gloomy, whereas a son's birth IS like sunrise in the
abode of gods.(1989:90).
The above quote shows clearly that in spite of claims by the
respondents that the Pandits don't differentiate between girls arid
boys, there was a clear gender bias among the Pandits in Kashmir.
Madan's work focused on Family and Kinship, on marriage, gende;r
relations and family structure. He further writes on the same issue:
Young boys are treated better by their elders than
young girls. This is particularly true of a first son.
Whether it is in the distribution of food and clothes or
in the verbal expression of love, sons receive greater
attention then daughters. The pandits affirm that the
daughters should be disciplined early and not spoilt as
they have to be married into other households.
(1989:65).
Whereas the girls stay at home and acquire vanous
domestic skills by assisting older women of the
household at their chores , boys are sent to school
involves expenditure on books, school uniforms etc. the
Pandits say that the sons are a solace in old age.
209
' According to Pandit etiquette a father should not fondle
his child in his own father's presence, though he may
do so in presence of his mother. ( 1989:69)
The older they grpw the more exclusively they associate
with members of their sex only and are thus steeped in
feminine ,ethos when quite young. The Pandits expect a
nubile girl to be on reserved terms with even such close
kinsmen as her elder brothers, father, paternal uncles
and cousins. ( 1989:86)
The Pandits regard children as one of the main
purposes of marriage and when a daughter in law has
delivered her first child they say of her that she has
proved her worth and found her real self. ( 1989:70)
The Pandit's view on the institution of marriage IS revealed by the
following quotes of Madan :
. The destiny of the Pandit woman is motherhood and
wifehood is the only culturally approved means to it.
She begins her adult and socially significant phase of
her life only with her marriage which also marks her
initiation into the full ritual status of a Brahman
woman. For a Pandit, marriage to a Muslim, is
permanently polluting and therefore' out of question,
unless he is willing to leave his household, sever all ties
of kinship and renounce his religion. A Pandit IS
expected and desires to marry in his own subcaste of
karkun or gor. Since there are no Hindus in Kashmir
who are non-Pandits the possibility of establishing
affinal ties with non-Brahmins is remote. (1989:95)
210 \
The respondents were asked about their marriage rituals, whether it
was different now in any manner, from what it had been in Kashmir.
Another interesting question is whether marriages took place in the
camps when the people did not separate rooms like they have today.
The respondents said that in the initial years there were no marriages
in the camp when the Pandits were living in the community hall. Then
after about two years the parents were keen that the marriageable
girls should get married as the young girls were living in proximity
with men in the camp.
As one respondent succinctly put it:
Many marriages in the camp have taken place. Initially
many marria'ges took place in the camp as they wanted to
see their children settled.· This has been due to the
proximity- you come to know people, their background etc,
now children decide for themselves. They may decide to
marry outside the community but the older· generation is
not happy about it. In our camp there has been one such
case and she is not happy in her marriage.( the bias
against love marriages is clear here)
The same respondent pointed out that:
One important condition for the marriage to take place is
that the horoscope of the bride and groom should match in
astrological terms - there should be a compatibility of thirty
guns (characteristics). It is also seen whether the girl is a
manglik (influence of Mars is strong) or not - she should be
less manglik than the boy or there are chances that she will
become a widow. The sub-caste is also important. A priest
Pandit cannot marry a businessman Pandit or an
agricultural one. On the question of gotra from the girl's
side they should be seven generations removed and from
211
the boy's side they should be four generations removed.
The gotra of the bride and groom should not be the same.
The field is therefore very narrow and marriage was a
problem.
Now things have changed smce names and professions
have changed, it is difficult to identify the particular sub
caste 'of the person. It is even more difficult to know about
those who have been here from before. So now Kaul, Bhatt,
Razdan, Raina and Shastri all are the same. The age of
marriage has gone up, my mother and mother-in -law got
married at the age of nine and eleven respectively, my
elder sister at fourteen. My daughter got married at twenty
eight.
Another respondent added to this conversation by saying :
The ideal age of marriage for girls is about twenty-five to
twenty-seven. It is a 'paap' (sin) to have an unmarried girl
of marriageable age at home. There should be an age gap of
about three to four years between the girl and the groom.
The mairi considerations in a groom are; he should enjoy
good health, his family background, place 0f origin,
profession. There is no system of dowry among the Pandits.
The period of engagement is not very long. The marriage
date is fixed according to an auspicious date and time. The
engagement ceremony is generally very simple with the
would-be-bride accepting a ring and a saree from the
groom's parents. The girl's parents first go to the groom's
place with some gift items. The groom's family would come
in the evening. A token amount of money is exchanged.
Now a days the engagement period is longer than before.
212
The engagement ceremony has also become more elaborate
due to the influence ·of the culture in Delhi. The token
amount is also much larger and is increasing day by day.
There has been an increase in the age of marriage from the time
Madan did his work in his fieldwork is evident. He writes, "through
observation, imitation of adult behaviour and from finding their
actions approved or disapproved the c~ildren learn to distinguish
between right and wrong and are thus conditioned to the norms of
Pandit culture. A girl may be married when she is 14 or 15 and her
parents- in-law will expect her to do all household work".
(1989:86).Another significant change has been that the engagement
ceremony is not as simple as it used to be Kashmir. When asked
whether the engagement ceremony takes place in the temple the reply
was:
Engagement ceremonies were not held in the temple in
Kashmir as most people would make arrangements in the
house itself. Now, the trend of temple engagements have
started again, due to lack of space. It is difficult to make
living arrangements for a large number of people in the
camp. The logic behind a temple engagement in the earlier
days was that nobody would break a word given before
God. Shamiana (tent) is set up in the temple premises and
food arrangements are made there.
However, about fifteen years before migration dowry had made its
presence felt. Many Kashmiri Pandit men had taken up jobs outside
the ·state. They had become acquainted with the dowry system and
started demanding it at home. The media- television programmes and
films had also contributed to this rise. There were no harassment
cases in case dowry was not given. This was in clear contrast to what
Madan had recorded in his work:
213
They try to ensure that the households into which t~eir
daughters are married should at least have as the
Pandits put it , hakh bata ( greens and rice , the staples
of the pandit diet i.e , they should not be so poor as to
be in need of the basic necessities of life ... but there is
general agreement that too much disparity between the
girl· giving and the girl receiving households is not
desirable not only may a much richer household expect
heavy presentations from its daughter-in-law but its
members may also ill treat her and taunt her for her
lowly origins .The parents of a son are not so limited in
their ambitions. The richer a daughter's parents and
higher the social status, the more her parents- in-law
stand to gain by their alliance. ( 1989:86)
Birth rites, ritual initiation involve considerable
expenditure. Even more money is spent on marriages;
the marriage of a daughter may necessitate the
borrowing of money by her natal household. When
children reach the age of five or six, their formal
instructions begins. (ibid: 83)
Either the Pandits did not want to acknowledge that the problem of
dowry existed even back in Kashmir or it had reduced by the eighties.
like mentioned 'earlier the Pandits had created a past which was
almost perfect. The problems faced in their daily, which I am sure
were many had been forgotten or conveniently pushed to the back of
their minds. They were more than happy to put the blame on the
new culture (in Delhi) for the new problem of dowry among the
Pandits. Madan had also recorded that the choice of groom had been
undergoing a change due to the turbulent times in the Valley by the
214
eighties, "A significant change has now taken place in this regard as a
consequence of recent political and economic changes in the valley.
Educated and active earners are now preferred to the barely literate
and indolent sons of rich landed families." (1989: 100) I
Let us now move on to the actual marriage rituals and the changes
that have come about. Certain changes took place in Kashmir and
some as a consequence of forced migration. One respondent
elucidated on the marriage rituals:
Before the wedding, the entire house is cleaned. This is
called gharmavan. In Kashmir a special broomstick was
used which is no longer used. This was mainly to show
others how clean we are. Decorations were made on the
door. This decoration is called the krool. (The respondent
could not remember the exact term for quite some time and
laughingly said, "It's been sixteen years so I am forgetting.")
These decorations are made on the doors of the relatives to ·
show that there is a wedding in the family. There is a pooja
one day before the wedding in which the groom is told what
a marriage is all about. Today the groom does not wear
dhoti, instead wears a pajama. "aabto modem zamaana aa
gaya hai. Hamari baat kaun suntan hai". (These are modern
times who will listen to us anymore.) Pashmina and Pheran
have Jost their significance. (Items of textile and dressings
which mark out a Kashmiri from others) However, there is
a special cap,· which is made for the girl which remains
compulsory even today. This we buy from Jammu or ask
somebody to get from Kashmir.
The 'wanavanun' (song ceremony) is very different from what it was in
Kashmir. It has a very distinct Punjabi touch now. In Kashmir women
would sing in their own language (Kashmiri), use the instruments
215
native to Kashmir, smg the Vedas. The songs would explain what
marriage is and how it should be conducted. The elderly ladies used
to know it by rote. This song ceremony which is called sangeet in
other parts of north India is known as 'wanavanun' in Kashmir. A
respondent elaborated on this important ceremony:
The elderly ladies would sing 'vachchan' during the entry of
the baraat. This involved taking the name of the three prior
generations according to the Vedas and state the
relationship. One lady would sing and then the others
would follow her. Now this has become difficult. Earlier the
ladies would be from the same village and would know I
everything about the families. Now we do not know.
Therefore, we have started using cassettes. The ladies us~d
to read the Vedas and Shastras. The Kashmiri Pandit
community is a very sensitive and serious one.
At one point of time, the marnage ceremony had become
very simple. Then we thought that we would lose all the
traditions and how will our children know about them. So,
we started to follow the customs again. Then the Brahmins
and the ladies came together and prepared the cassettes.
Even during Shiva-Ratri, as the priest could not come to
our homes, the people use the cassettes. At least we can
hear the chants from the Brahmins mouth. Our children
listen to the cassettes and learn from them. However, they
are more interested in watching television, when they are in
the mood they are keen to learn. Another slight change is
that when the marriage ·is decided we give sugar crystals
(mishri), almonds, now we have to send sweets. In Kashmir,
sweets never played an important role, as we did not eat
much of sweets. After coming here our children have
started demanding it. (more on this in the cuisine section)
216
Now loud speakers are used during the sangeet (song ceremony).
Children want to dance and Hindi songs are sung. Earlier money was
not a part of this ceremony, now people take out money in Punjabi
style. We could see this acculturation - due to coming into contact
with the Punjabi culture in Delhi. People dance in front of the baraat ,
and DJ has become compulsory. None of this was a part of the
Kashmiri wedding, though these changes could have come about even
in the valley due to the exposure to media. Though now it has to be
recorded as a result of forced migration.
Continuing with the marriage rituals the respondent said;
A day before the wedding the bride's hair , is oiled and
braided with ribbons. The father's sister comes and opens
one braid first then other relatives follow. She then washes •
the bride's feet and puts henna on the bride's hand. Money
is given to the aunt for this. Henna or mehendi is applied in
decorative patterns on feet and hands. The bathing
ceremony took place next day in the morning. The bride
and groom in their respective homes would be bathed in
curd. The bride would not use a comb, instead a stick is
used to make a parting. A head covering made of starched
poplin cloth of about two and half meters is put on the
bride's head.
In Kashmir, the bathing ceremony would take place in the
corridor, called 'k:uvoot', built in our house. This space was '
also used for bathing the dead bodies before cremation.
The family guru would preside over such events. In case of
death the guru would read the text with two or three
Brahmins. During the bathing ritual of the marriage
217
ceremony, the guru would instruct on what IS done and
how.
Today we do not have a kul-guru. We have to beg the priest
to come and do the rituals. He may or may not be from our
community. We pay for his services. For the weddings we
have to get a priest from our community other wise he will
not know the rituals. In case of pooja. we know most of
things so we do many things ourselves or guide the priest.
Our religious texts are written in a language called Sharada
while here it is read in Hindi-Sanskrit. These texts have
everything written in them, all the rituals are there.
Therefore, we read them and do as directed or tell the
priest about it.
The loss of the priest has been a maJor change in the life of the
Pandits. During the conversations regarding the religious ceremonies
the Pandits would bring this up as to how difficult it was for them to
preserve their religious culture in the absence of their family priest to
guide them. The importance of the family priest can be gauged from
the following lines by Madan:
The relationship of a priest with his yajaman is
hereditary. Its permanency is unaffected by any
arrangement that may be made for its suspension for
reasons of convenience. If a priest dies without leaving a
son or any closely related agnate behind him the right to
serve his clientele may be inherited by his daughter's
son. On every occasion he provides his services to a
client household the priest receives a dakshina in cash
or kind, or both. The amount of fee varies with the
economic status of each household and the importance
of each occasion. In rural areas such fees are nominal
218
but a priest receives from all land owning households a
certain quantity of paddy at harvest ti~e. He also gets
all the money which the boys of his client households
receive from their kith and kin on the occasion of their
initiation. The priests are thus economically dependent
on their yajaman.( 1989: 20)
The Pandits still prefer marnages within their community. Prof
S.L.Pandit writes that this preference for Pandit bride and grooms has
helped preserved the Pandit culture among the migrants. He writes, "
in their exclusiveness , they were very rigid in marrying their boys and
girls within the resident Kashmiri Brahmins , though some of them
had no' hesitation in marrying their children into any· well placed
family still living in the valley.... In their social and sacred rituals,
they uniformly observe,d the routine that covered the life of the
Brahmin in Kashmir ... "( 2001:28)
After coming to the camps demands of dowry are no longer made. As
such in a marriage, the bride's parents give gold, utensils (some silver
and brass utensils are essential), and clothes. All the items are first
worshipped in a ceremony called saterat. Every parent, actually the
uncle, has to give the 'deejor', which is tied to a thread, this is the
most visible symbol of a married Kashmiri woman it can be compared
to the mangalasutra( thali) used in the southern India and the sindoor
used in the northern parts of India . The thread is replaced by a gold
chain, called 'athoor', by the mother-in- law when the bride goes to
the groom's house. Everything that is given to the girl is first blessed
through a pooja. The deejor has a special pooja. There was no concept
of mangalsutra, but now people have started tying the mangalsutra
during the marriage rituals. The bride wears a red sari. Earlier a
special pheran was made for the wedding but this custom was
dropped long before the migration. Each relative puts a garland of
money and flowers around the groom. This used to be home made but
219
now is purchased at shops. The groom was expected to carry a sword
earlier but now a knife suffices. This actually shows traces of the
kshatriya influence even though all the Pandits claim Brahmana
status.
The jaimala is an important part of the marriage rituals. It takes place
before the bride and groom move towards the havan( the sacred fire lit
for the rituals). The bride and groom exchange garlands and are given
some sweets to be eaten. They then move on for the main rituals.
They have to cross a rangoli made rice powder. The kangri( fire lit in a
clay oven) is-given to the groom as shagun(auspicious item). The bride
is given a Shiva-Parvati or Radha-Krishna photograph, which she
takes with her. The bride and groom then see each their face in ghee,
separately. The bride and the groom are technically supposed to see
each other for the first time in a mirror and this is a part of the
rituals. Of course, today this is a mere formality. The posh pooja -
ritual involving showering of flowers on the bride and groom is one of
the most important rituals. One respondent replied that earlier the
marriage would take about eight hours of which the posh pooja it self
would be of two hours. Today everything is done but has been cut
short.
The in-laws are given a utensil, of brass in Kashmir and now of steel,
filled with sugar and money. They amount of money depends on the
status of the bride's family. Glass and gold bangles are given to the
bride. Today the bride'~ prefer the bangles the Punjabis wear after
marriage called the chuda .. This is a clear indication of acculturation.
The glass bangles are hardly used now. As one respondent put it, "We
had beautiful customs. The guruji used to explain everything- the
meaning of the rituals, what is marriage, what the chants say. Now
everything has been spoiled. People do not take marriage seriously
and divorce has become so common." (But hastens to add that this is
not so among Kashmiri Pandits).
220
After the wedding rituals, the bride and groom walk out on money,
which has been spread out. The guruji takes this money. The bride
and groom then eat in the neighbours house and then leave for the
groom's place. Certain games have been added to the wedding
ceremonies - like hiding the shoe of the groom, searching for the
ring/ coin in milk etc. These are essentially Punjabi customs which
have been acquired as consequence of acculturation.
One respondent explained:
The rituals have remained the same, some have been
added looking at the people around us. The main thing that
has changed is the time that is· devoted to marriage and
even festivals. Earlier people used to come in before a week
of marriage. We Used to make arrangements in the temples
for people to stay. Our temple premises were huge. We
could arrange mattresses and blankets, arrange a cook
who would cook for the guests.· Arrangements would be
made even for the groom's traveling party ·lbaraat). We had . I
a lot of space in our houses too. Now, there is no space in
the camp and we cannot ask people to come much in
advance. Today the wedding is over in a day. It is not a
question of money, just that people do not want to take the
trouble anymore. They just book a community hall for a
day and finish everything.
When asked about the availability of jewellery of their kind in Delhi.
One respondent said that initially none of the shopkeepers knew what
a deejoor was. Therefore, they took a sample and showed it to him.
However, now almost all the jewelers know about the Kashmiri
designs and make them. When I enquired whether any Pandit had
opened a jewellery shop. The respondents said that so far they have
221
not heard of any such shop m Delhi, though there are a few m
Jammu.
The respondents said that many changes had come over due to the
climate. The bride used to be covered in a pashmina shawl but the
heat in Delhi prevents its use. This is a clear example of cultural '
change due to change in environment. When asked whether they use
it in the winter weddings. The respondents said the same things:
Firstly, there is nobody to make that particular shawl here. Secondly,
it will too expensive. Thirdly, the new generation prefers the bright
north-Indian style 'chunnis'. Those who can afford it use the
pashmina and the red chunni. The last was never done in Kashmir.
Earlier, part of the wedding arrangements involved making a special
oven for cooking food for the guests. It would be ,huge and about four
to five dishes could be cooked at the same time. This was done even
in cities. After shifting to the camps this became difficult as the oven
making process was time taking. Marriage would take ,place in
community halls rented out for a day qr two. They would: not even
know where to get the stones and mud. The other problem was that
the community halls did not allow such constructions in the
premises.
I wanted to know about the code of conduct govermng the
relationship between the daughter -in -law and the parents- in-law.
The mam characteristics looked for in a girl are that
she should be good looking, educated and well
mannered. She should not fight and should stay
harmoniously with the elders in the family. She should
be calm, serene and know how to stay with her head
down.
222
'.;'
The daughter-in-law is like a daughter. In fact, before
marriage she visits the house of the groom so that she
can see the house where she will be staying and in
case she feels that there is something lacking she can
get it during the marriage. In case there is any
discussion then it is done face to face. There is no
concept of ghunghat, there is an unwritten rule,
certain code of decency' aankhon ki sharam'. However,
in the camp things have changed whatever little
sharam was there is no longer there, it is decreasing
day by day. The daughters in law do not respect their
father or mother in law. They answer back and fight.
This is mainly due to the lack of space. When we had
come all of us - father and mother-in-law, brother-in
law, daughter had to stay in the same room. It was a
very difficult time for us. We cannot follow many
customs due to · monetary concerns. So we · come
together as brothers. izzat, maan to rakhna padhta hai.
(Have to keep ones honour and prestige).
It is interesting to note that while a girl was not expected to see her to
be groom· before her marriage she was allowed to visit her future
home. A slight ambiguity suggests it~elf in the cultural pattern here
but this gives us a clue as to which area of ones life greater cultural
value was attached. The physical attraction between spouses was '
relegated to the background while the concept of conjugal bliss was
viewed through the prism of family. The role for a daughter was
expected to revolve around the entire family rather than the merely
husband. This is a cultural idea that can be stated to be truly pan
Indian and it is an idea that has come under increasing strain due to
the forces of modernization and urbanization.
223
Two women spoken to were from Delhi itself but had married
Kashmiri Pandits. One of then said that:
I was ignorant of the customs and language of the
Kashmiri Pandits but had picked it up. The marriage
had taken place in Punjabi style. On reaching Kashmir
my mother-in-law got my ear pierced so that I could
wear the deejor, the sign of a married Kashmir Pandit
woman.· I learnt all the work also - looking after the
cows, agricultural work, cleaning the house. People
used to comment that I have surpassed all of them
where work was concerned. I used to get up by four in
the morning and used to sleep by nine. We used to sleep
on mat, which is not available here, and put the
mattresses on them.
As mentioned in the beginning of the chapter itself there is a clear
disparity in what the respondents had to say about the way they bring
up their children and the reality (as recorded by Madan). The Pandits
are no different from any other community in India in expecting the
women to be docile, hardworking and not very career orientated. At
least in the rural areas education of the women was not of primary
concern.
Certain changes in marriage customs had already started taking place
in Kashmir before the process of migration began. This was mainly
regarding the wedding attire of both bride and groom, meeting of the
boy and girl, bypassing the matchmaker in finding bride/groom.
Forced migration and the subsequent shift to the camp bought in
more changes. These major changes were due to lack of space,
difference in the weather and last but not the least, the loss of the
guruji (priest). The Pandits have maintained the ritualistic aspect of
the marriage and have devised methods like using pre-recorded
224
cassettes with chants, mantras, etc, to preserve their cultur~ for the
future generations.
Acculturation has been another factor which has bought changes; it
has added cultural traits of the majority population in Delhi to those
of Kashmiri Pandits. The younger generation has been prone to
changes -, so the changes in the music played, food being served and
many such issues are mainly because of the children. The
respondents themselves acknowledged that the children determine a
lot of things and are insistent that the Punjabi customs they have
seen or come to know about should be included, several examples
have been given earlier - wearing chuda, hiding the shoes of the
groom, including north Indian sweets in the menu. The younger
generation goes out to work or study and interacts with the local
population which acquaints the different customs and they take in
what attracts them. If we recollect here the studies mentioned in the
second chapter we can see that this is the pattern in all refugee/IDP
camps.
The respondents felt that the media too was responsible for the
changes. This of course introduces the idea that the changes could
have then come about even without the forced migration. But the
Pandits might not have had the access to various channels like they
have in Delhi. But we can see that while changes in every culture are
a part of every society the stress and strain placed on the culture due
to forced migration cannot be ignored. In fact all the changes we have
recorded have to be seen in the light of the forced· migration, if we
have to gam a holistic understanding of what this culture is
·undergoing.
225
SOME CUSTOMS/NORMS
In this section we will deal with certain aspects ot the Pandits way of
living which were found to be different from other cultures. These
things cropped up during conversations or due to observation of life in
the camp. There was no prior intention to investigate these issues. It
seemed interesting and important so was recorded and. added on in
this chapter. During the conversations in the camp, it came out that
certain customs and norms were an integral part of the Kashmiri
Pandit culture.
KITCHEN:
In Kashmir, those who did not have large utensils were considered I .
poor. Water was carried from the stream in utensils. There was a
small space outside which was used for washing utensils. No used
utensil is ever bought into the kitchen. Because of this, they did not
even have a wash basin in the kitchen. Even during snowfall, the '
women would wash everything outside. Even when taking water out of
a pitcher the glass should not touch the utensil. However, the
Muslims were hot so strict about this, they would wash inside or near
the stream. Most of the people in the villages did not have taps in the
houses, the tap is generally found in the city kitchens. Nobody enters
the kitchen wearing shoes. (This of course is a pan Indian
phenomenon) They used mostly brass utensils. but now use
glassware. The Pandits do not keep utensils on the carpet,a cloth was
spread on· which plates and other utensils to be used are kept. This
was observed even in the camp.
As described in the previous chapter (chapter four), each family in the
camp had a small room with an attached kitchen though the latter
was a recent addition. The kitchen was so small that two people in' it
would be a crowd. There was a big sink made by the government who
obviously did not know about the habits of the Pandits. In the camp,
226
/
there was no separate space for washing utensils. Still the residents
would not take the used utensils into the kitchen. They would collect
it and wash it outside. The Pandits said they will follow this custorri
even in the flats in Dwarka(Delhi). (These flats were constructed 'by
the government for the Pandits, which we have referred to in the
earlier se'ctions). In fact, they have built a separate space, outside the
flats, with a tap, where they wash their utensils.
. A respondent elaborated on this:
In Kashmir, everybody had his or her own plate. The
women would eat in the plate, which was used by the
husband (a practice followed in many parts of the country).
Brass plates were used rather than the steel plates which
are used now:. The Pandits would not eat outside in the
hotels. We taught this to our children too. Now, of course,
since many stay outside their homes they have to eat
outside in hotels, in the hostel mess. They even eat with
Muslims, which was unheard of. There are some people
who look out for a clean stove, utensil to cook something. I
have stopped eating from my husband's plate as he eats
outside how.
All our shastras are very scientific. It tells us to wash our
hands before eating, to walk barefoot - today science is
telling us all this. I read in Markandeya puran that brass in
never clean even after being washed. It is because of this
that the plates used to be separate. We used to serve food
to the elders first, and then the rest of the family used to
eat. The children may eat with the elders, as they are not
able to remain hungry for long. It was a sign of respect.
Even now, this custom is followed. Very few families have
227
kept separate plates, as when we came we hardly had any
utensils so it was difficult to maintain this custom.
BATHROOMS:
The Pg.ndits from run:il Kashmir were also not used to the concept of a
bathroom inside the house. Most men used to bathe in the stream~
Women would do the same while some used to have a secluded '
portion outside the house for this portion. The women would get up
very early to bathe, for the sake of privacy. One respondent was
dearly distressed by the construction of the flats in Dwarka . He said
"In the allotted flats in Dwarka the bathroom and the kitchen are
situated next to each other. How can we use it? How could they make
it like this?"
Another custom peculiar to Kashmir probably was the use of
mud/ soil to wash hands and faces. My respondents said that:
Nobody used to use soap in Kashmir. The soil of Kash~ir
was better thap soap and it contained moisturizers which
used to keep our skin in good condition. When I came here,
I would set out early morning to get mud, from deeply dug
trenches. One day, a person asked me what I was doing. I
told him and he advised me not to do so as the soil here is
polluted. In Jammu, the problem is worse as the soil there
is poisonous due to the presence of snakes and scorpions.
Many were inflicted with infe~tions due to the mud. Snakes
and scorpions stung many as they took out soil. Even after
sixteen years, I feel my hands are not clean. Our children
who have not used the soil do not understand my problem
and are comfortable using soap.
The older generation in the camp referred to this habit of theirs while
the younger generation did not ~ention it at all. IH all probability they
228
did not follow these customs and associated it with the older
generation. The elders even after sixteen years of migration had not
got accustomed to the change in their lives and tried to adhere to as
many customs they could - however small. According to them their
grandchildren are anyways ignorant about many things, at least they
should be aware of the important festivals and certain particular
habits so that they do not lose touch with the Pandit way of life.
We can see that things which seem insignificant to many could be
important to the people concerned. One can scarcely imagine that
someone would problems even adjusting to using soaps especially as
a cultural phenomenon. They said that on going back they would
revert back to using soil even if their children use soaps.
RELIGION
Religion today is probably is one of the most discussed topics in the
world. Stereotyping on basis of religion, terrorism, riots all are related
to religion. For the Pandits the problem of forced migration is at one
level based on the question of religious identities. They take a great
deal of pride m their religious heritage and consider themselves
superior even to other Brahmin communities. Chaman Lal Gadoo
writes:
It is a known fact that both the Shaivagams and
Vaishnavagams have originated from Kashmir. The rich
Shiva Shaktha and Tantra tradition of Kashmir is still ·in
vogue in the form of religious practices and rituals
performed by the Kashmiri Brahmins. Although
Kashmiri scholars have given a rich monastic Trika
philosophy called Kashmiri Shaiva Darshan , in respect
of religious practices and rituals Kashmiri Pandits have
always followed the Vedic prescriptions. ( 2001;34)
229
The Pandits are a very religious community ahd their festivals are
different from rest of the country. They have a few festivals, which are
common, but they celebrate it differently. The Pandits worship all the
Hindu gods but the one of supreme importance was Lord Shiva and
hence Shiva Ratri is the main festival. The Pandits also worship the
mother goddess in various forms. Thus, Navratras is _also an
important festival for them:
In Kashmir, annual pilgrimages to Sher Bhavani temple at Tulmula
and Shankrarcharya were made. There used to be a Sher Bhavani
mela during ' ashaad ka shukla paksh ahtami' (the eight day during
bright half of the moon in the month of monsoon) and 'jeth ki shukla
paksh ashtami'(the eight day during bright half of the moon in the
month of jeth). The Pandits have not visited these places after they
have migrated from Kashmir.
When told that that in som6 camps the Sikhs migrants from Kashmir
also referred to themselves as Pandits, the respondents replied that
they are referred to as sardars, but they were definitely not Pandits.
The Pandits and sardars could eat in each other's houses. The
respondent elaborated:
No Kashmiri Pandit would set out of the house without
washing his hands. This was especially after tying the
shoelaces. It may so happen that one may touch a
glass or some food item with 'impure' hands. If we do
so then we have to bathe. Therefore, it is essential that
we wash out hands with ~mitti' (soil). If our hands our
clean then it does not matter. However, the sardars do.
not believe in this concept. The sardars do not
celebrate Janmashtami but they may visit the Pandit
homes during the celebrations.
230
In the following section some of the main festivals among the pandits
will be discussed. A lot of material is available on how the festivals
should be celebrated but this study tries to find out how the festivals
were and are actually celebrated. Sometimes when asked about
certain festivals and whether they still do follow them, they would '
smile and say that whatever t~ose things used to happen a long time
back. As mentioned in the second chapter no culture can remain
static; changes are bound to take place with time. This has happened
with the Pandit culture, let us see what changes that have occurred
and why. Festivals are an integral part of any religion and thus a
discussion on it will show the changes that have come about in the
religious life of the Pandits.
Festivals:
On referring to Bernadi's view on environment and culture we can see
that that there is a close connection between the two- "the rituals,
beliefs are centered on the environment a group lives in- the worship
of trees, sky etc."(1977:81). We find this very true in the case of the
Pandits. The, free flowing streams, forests played an important role in
the festivals of the Pandits and now they have adapted to life without
them.
Festivals bring the people together during the. course of celebrations.
Some festivals may be celebrated by a family at home while some are
celebrated on a larger scale- for example the Durga puja of Bengalis.
Madan writes that the Pandits do not have any festival which is
celebrated on a group basis. During discussions the Pandits
mentioned that they used to celebrate many things together but now
they do not due to space and monetary constraints. So let us take
each festival and review the changes that have come about in the
course of time and the reason behind the change. The indented
portion is the respondent's information on celebrations as it used to
231
take place in rural Kas,hmir. We can see this as pre-migration and
post-migration practices.
Shiva Ratri: The main festival of the Pandits
In Kashmir:
In Kashmir, we would get mud pots in which we would give
food to the gods. This was then put in the streams. It was
Kashmir itself that people stated using steel pots instead of
mud pots. Today many people buy new steel pots every
Shiva Ratri, but we do not. In Kashmir, the potter would ·
give us mud pots and we would give him grain in exchange.
The next day of Shiva-Ratri the Muslims would come for
food. We would give them a lot of grain. At that time the
value of money was more, grain was in excess and was
often burnt. Then the value of money increased and people
started selling the excess grains.
In the camp:
We fast for the whole day and then worship m the
evenmg. We take brass or mud vessels and fill it with
walnuts' and sugar. It signifies a wedding of Lord Shiva
with Parvati. We even have 'baraatis'. The pooja starts
with ganesh pooja, kalash pooja and is then followed by
the actual shiv parvati pooja. The Prasad is rice, which
is then eaten. We still follow the rituals as we used to in
Kashmir. Dry fruits, dry coconut are kept in water for
two or three days and then consumed on the first day of
Shiva Ratri. The Prasad instead of being put in the
stream is now given to the birds.
Shiv Ratri is one such festival which is celebrated in the same manner
as before, other than the role of the stream which the Pandit have
now changed due to changed circumstances.
232
Raksha Bandhan
In Kashmir:
We would fast the whole day and do a Satya Narayan
katha. We did not tie a rakhi (thread that is tied around
the brother's wrist in North India).
In the camp: ·
The procedure 1s more or less the same as it was in
Kashmir with the only difference being that now a days
tying the rakhi has become a fashion as our children.
see the people in Delhi dqing it.
The most notable difference has been the ritual of tying Rakhi( thread
tied symbolizing protection of the brother from mishaps) after coming
to the camp. This change has come about due to the insistence of
children who observed others around them doing it.
Janmashtani (birthday of Lord Krishna)
In Kashmir:
We worship lord Krishna on that day. We keep a
photograph or an idol in a cradle and worship it. It is done
in every house. We have a day long fast accompanied by
Satya Narayan katha. We then go to the temple in the
evening; come back and eat puri (deep fried wheat dough)
and tea. We do not know for how long the people fast here.
There was no yatra like the one held in Delhi. Yatras had
started but much later. The Muslims would throw stones
so that the yatra would not be completed. It was because of
this that the pooja was restricted to the home and temple.
There has been no change in the way the Pandits celebrate
Janmashthami .
233
Nav Reh ( New Year)
There was no difference in the celebration of the Kashmiri New Year in
Kashmir and in camp. The respondent told that,
On this day we take a plate of rice, put some money on
it, photograph of a god, walnut and cover it. We then see
it first thing in the morning. This is still observed.
A respondent elaborated on the difference m Kashmir and in the
camp:
We have a festival every month. It is the shukla paksh
ashtami, full moon day. We fast on that day. Though we
celebrate all the festivals, we do not have the same zeal.
Earlier we used to wait the whole night for our guruji. Now
since we no longer have a guru we either do it ourselves or
hire a person. He has to go to many houses and so he does
everything in a hurry.
The last sentence reiterates the importance of the priest in the lives of
the Pandit. The loss of the regular priest has affected the ritualistic
content of many celebrations.
Gada Bhata
In Kashmir:
The term 'Gada Bhata' means rice and fish. It is celebrated
on any Tuesday or Saturday of dark fortnight of the lunar
month of Pausha. Fish is cooked and relatives' and friends
are invited home. A plateful of fish and rice is arranged and
it is placed at a clean place m a room on the top floor,
called Kaeni. This is meant for the deity of the house
referred to as the Ghar deveta. The plate is covered
properly with an up turned basket and nearby is a glass of
234
water. After placing the plate at the fixed place for the
deity, a feast of rice and fish is held along with near and
dear ones.
The respondents told more the or less the same thing about the
festival. They said that this festival is for the ghar devta (god of the
house). On this day fish and rice is served to the god. The fish is
cleaned but the waste is not thrown., There was a fixed place in the
house in Kashmir; it could be the terrace or any such place. The god
is supposed to come and have the food offering. Each house has its
own god.
One respondent felt that it no longer made sense to foilow this festival
as the camp is not technically a 'home' and the god of the house
cannot reside here. She said she would resume this festival once she .r
has a home of her home. The other respondents said that they still
observe the festival though there is no fixed place Ior keeping the
offering. Since the families were joint families this festival was
observed collectively as each family can have only one 'grih devta'. ,
With the breaking up of the joint family each family observes this
festival in their respective camp rooms. It was one of the community
based festivals , but space and monetary constraints have changed all
that.
Pun Deun
In Kashmir:
This is a traditional celebration, which almost all Kashmiri families
celebrate in the month of Bhadron (August/ September) by preparing
very delicious Roths (wheat pancakes). In the south this is celebrated
a Ganesh Puja. The celebration gives great enjoyment in the form of a
get together for the family, and especially among children. The house
kitchen, utensils everything was cleaned. The pancakes were made in
235
a special brass wok. For making the pancakes the ingredients used
were- white flour, brown sugar, ghee(butter), salt, vegetable oil,
yogurt, khaskash seeds, cardamom. For the pooja- flowers, walnut,
rice fruits, nariwan (colored string), green grass(Dramun). The senior
lady of the house used to perform this celebration.' An unmarried girl
used to spin some cotton thread on the charkha. 'This was put in the
ear during the celebrations. About 1 kg of wheat flour with some
brown sugar was kept in a separate pla~e as a offering to god.
Separately, about 250 grams of wheat flour per person in the family is
weighed and used for cooking. The pancakes were then fried for the
god and the family members. A container of water was then decorated
flower garland, coloured string and silver foil. The pancake offerings to
the god were were then placed on the container along with some
walnuts and fruits. This is called the Naveed (Prasad in Hindi). The
lady would then read the story·behind the celebration of the festival,
taking out the cotton thread and holding some rice and barley in her
palm. She would tie the coloured string on everybody's hand and give
them rice and barley. The pancakes would be distributed among
neighbours and relatives.
In the camp:
As one of the respondents described this festival in detail, it· was a
little different from what has been described in the available literature
on this topic. In every state, we find that that there may be certain
regional variation in celebrating a festival. Therefore, let us see his
description of the festival:
Five to eight households used to get together and celebrate.
First, the flour (ground rice powder) had to be prepared.
The rice had to be cleaned and dried on a clean cloth. The
Muslims, who used to know everything about the festivals,
used to grind the rice. They used to clean the chakki
(traditional grinding machine) and then grind the rice. The
236
rice powder was stored in a 'pure utensil', which was earlier
made of mud. Now brass or stainless steel is used. Those
who don't have utensils may use a new piece of cloth.
Dough was prepared mixing the rice flour, sugar and milk
Chappatis were made out of it on mud 'tawa'(pan).
One cup of atta (wheat flour) was put in the name of eve:ry
family member. About 1 kilogram of flour, sugar, ghee,
cardamom, khus khus, silver foil are used. The kitchen and
utensils are cleaned and then only the puris are made. A
Maa Bhavani kalash is prepared (Kalash is the Hindi word
for a brass or steel water container). It is decorated with
rangoli, flowers and a special grass (particular to Kashmir).
Ladies fast on this day and unmarried girls spin cotton.
The cotton is put in the ear. Today getting spun cotton is
difficult. We ask around from those who have daughters or
those who have it to give us some. It is difficult to get it as
few people have a charkha. The flour should not fall on the
floor and nobody should step on it. To prevent this flour
that falls on the floor is put in the river or under the tree.
In the camp: '
The f~stival is celebrated, but the process is no longer that
elaborate. Some make the rice powder at home while some
go to the nearby grinding shop. Many use wheat flour too.
Each family does its own pooja. The mud 'tawa' is a thing
of the past. The dough is now deep-fried in oil, much like
the 'puri'. The rice plate for the god is placed under the
peepal tree. The Pandits have to do without the grass 'Ari'
as it is found only in Kashmir.
In Kashmir the rivers, the trees play a vital role in the festivals. f\dded
to this is the established role of the local people in the celebrations. It
237
1s these aspects which are no longer a part of the festivals of the
Pandits in Delhi.
Monjhaher Taeher
In Kashmir:
Monjaher in Kashmiri means the lunar month of margha Shirsha.
Taeher means yellow rice cooked with mustard. On the first day
following the end of Marghashirsha, that is beginning of the Pausha
month such nee 1s specially cooked and offered to, the house and
village deity.
In the camp:
· One of the respondents talked about this festival and explained how
they celebrated it in his village.
This festival is celebrated for the village god. The village
god looks after the welfare of the village and villagers.
Not even the god of death can enter ~ithout his
. permission. It was celebrated during the shukla paksh
on Tuesday and Saturday. Rice was kept for the god in a
plate. The plate was placed on a type of grass called Ari
under an auspicious tree namely the 'chinar' .
......
The essence of the festival is no longer the same. The celebration has
lost its significance in the wake of forced migration, as the concept of
the god of village has no meaning now; the chinar too is a thing of the
past in Delhi. The Pandits still follow the festival out of habit.
Khyachi Mavas
In Kashmir:
This is also known as the Yaksha Amavasya. The last day
of the dark fortnight of the Paush,dedicated to the 'Yaksha',
which again refers to some forest dwelling tribe that lived
238
there before the rishis. On this day, a special dish of
moong(lentil) mixed with rice is prepared in the evening. It
is served to the 'Y akshya' on an improvised plate made of
dry grass. The plate is placed on top of the compound wall.
The kitchen mortal is placed on a grass ring worshipped as
a symbol of the cosmos and decorated with
sindoor(vermiHion), sandal, raw rice and flowers. These
festivals were apparently h~ld to satisfy the demands of the
aborigines and tribesmen.
In the camp:
The Pandits clean the utensils and the oven on this day. They then
cook 'khichdi' (cook rice and lentil together). For this purpose either
moong or urad dal(types of lentil) is used. It is kept in a particular
place as an offering to god. In the camp, they do not have a fixed place
as they used to have in Kashmir. One respondent said that when he
shifts to his flat at Dwarka he will assign a particular place to keep
the offering. This clearly shows that the Pandits want to follow their
customs.
Nav-Ratri
In Kashmir:
This festival is celebrated all ove~ India though in different ways. In
Kashmir, the Pandits used to clean every utensil in the kitchen and
fast on three days- ashtami(eight), navami(ninth) and
ekadasi(eleventh). They ate before sunset. The fast on ekadasi was
more rigorous as they did not consume anything other than tea and
milk. The Pandits used to get a ball of salt, which they used daily.
During the Nav-ratri they used to keep a portion separately to be used
specially on the festival days. No sugar was used; jaggery was
consumed intead of sugar.
239
In the camp:
In the camp, the fasting pattern remains the same. Everything is
cleaned before the· festival. The Pandits have substituted the ball of
salt with rock salt, which the north- Indians have during the fasts.
Sugar is consumed as eatingjaggery is a matter of 'shame'. (sharam ki
baat). This is probably because jaggery usage is more among the poor
in this part of the country.
' .· Kahnaether
In Kashmir:
It is known as Jatakaram Samskar. It is akin to baptism-a
ritualistic propitiation of deities and acceptance of a new
born child into the family fold and gotra. Prior to, the third
day there is a ceremony called the trui, · in which fried
sesame seeds garnished with sugar candy and walnuts are
distributed among friends and relatives. On the tenth day
is the Shran-sonder which combines the ceremonial
medicinal bath with the Vedic ritual of pumsuam. Without
the Shran-sonder, the Kahnaether cannot be held. The
importance of the Kahnaether is that without it no other
religious activity can take place in the house. On this day a
havan is performed and the child is given a name.
In the camp:
This takes place 'on the eleventh day of childbirth. It is longer for the
boy than the girl. This is because the girl has a. longer pooja during
the marriage. Until this is done, everybody is impure in the house.
Thus this is very important for the family. A pooja is held and Prasad
(offering to the god) is sent to everybody's home. The celebrations are
done in the same manner as before.
240
Deepawali
In Kashmir:
Deepawali or Diwali is probably the most important festival m the
northern region. In Kashmir it was not so. It was a very simple affair.
The Pandits used to light a few diyas, make sweet puris, and light a
few crackers.
In the camp:
After coming to Delhi, they have inculcated the North-Indian way of
celebrating this festival. Earlier there was no custom of sending gift
items to the girl's home on this day. Now, it has become an expected
behaviour- clothes and sweets have to be sent the daughter and her
in-laws. The children expect more fanfare- more crackers and sweets.
Visiting friends with the same has also become the norm. this is
" probably one of the festhmls which has witnessed major changes in
the celebration pattern due to acculturation.
Holi:
Holi was hardly celebrated in Kashmir by the Pandits. They said that
they would play Holi with the Muslims. Now Holi has also been added
to the list of' festivals. The children insist on playing it as they see
their friends celebrating it with a lot of gusto. (Another example of
acculturation).
One respondent summed. it up well:
We celebrate most festivals, but do not devote as much
time as before. With more money, people's hearts have
become smaller. In the camp we do not invite the people
over, just send the Prasad to their homes. We show our
children the rituals so that they learn and do it when we
241
are no longer around. Instead of putting the offering under
the walnut trees we now put it in the temples. The yellow
rice is meant for apsaras, but which apsara will come here.
Instead of separate places, all the families in the camp put
in the same place. Even today, as per the custom, in the
event of somebody's death we put out the food for a year.
We have a shradh after fifteen days then three months then
six rrionths and then after one year. During teen ashtami
we light diyas for out pitr during morning and evening.
It was seen that the festivals which had involved the family now had
now become individualistic- gada bhata , pun duen , while the
festivals which required that each family should have its own space
like- khyachi mavas, monjahaer taeher has become more collective as
they do not have . their own space under the chinar tree or in the
terrace.
The above section clearly shows that effort has been m:ade by the
Pandit to preserve their culture as far as festivals are concerned. They
have adapted to the new surroundings and are doing their best to
familiarize the children with their customs. Though further research
on the next generation of Kashmiri Pandits will show as to how far the
parents have been successful· in transmitting- their culture. The
children have played a major role in the present changes and how
these children will be able to resist further influence is yet to be seen.
FAMILY
The families in rural Kashmir were joint families. The families would
consist of the parents, siblings (brothers), unmarried sisters and the
families of the brothers. They had a common kitchen and were close
knit. The parents were in charge of the finances unless decided other
wise by them. The elders took the major decisions.
242
A lady respondent gave the example of her home:
My father and his elder brother used to stay together. We
were so close that I never knew the difference between my
own sisters and my cousins. My uncle, we refer to him as
- the elder father, ·fixed my wedding. My father did not even
know where my in-laws. house was. He used to send things
and do everything. In fact, I had taken up science but he
came and put my name in humanities. This was because
there were boys in my class and I was the only girl.
We used to have a joint family consisting of my in laws and
brother in law. My father and brother in law had left
Kashmir earlier and were staying somewhere . .Then my
daughter and I came and searched for them. We stayed
together at the camp but registered as separate families so
that we could get the benefits- ration and relief. Now my
brother in law has shifted to Jammu and my father in law
has expired. I stay with my son and daughter in law. My
daughter is in the same camp and she has a room upstairs.
Another respondent talking about the situation in the camp said :
Whenever there is a function, we celebrate it together, go
for functions together, give one gift as family. Some may
give it separately depends on the family. We even cook
together in case of functions. We are not able to things
alone. We cannot follow many customs due to monetary
concerns. So we come together as brothers. "Izzat, maan to
rakhna padhta hai." (have to keep ones honour and
prestige).
243
Division of labour; The Allocation of Roles
When I asked whether, the men helped in any household work. The
answer was an emphatic no. "The men do not get up even to fetch a
glass of water, they ask us to get it. Only if nobody is at home then
the men may do some nominal work. The work of the men is
restricted mainly to the fields. It was observed that in the camps too
the women were constantly on their feet catering to demands of
'kahva' (Kashmiri tea) and snacks. The men loved to sit and discuss
various issues while the women cleaned, washed and looked after the
children.
The only exceptions to this rule were men who had stayed outside.
The difference being that they knew how to cook, but this did not
mean that they would help at horrie. Many men worked in the city and
would come to the village once or twice a month. They stayed in
rented rooms in the city. Since the Pandits did not eat in hotels and '
were particular about purity-pollution they had to cook their own
meals. This is still applicable to the older generation who do not go
out.
Forced migration meant that the families could not even live together.
The camps were too small to accommodate the entire families. Those
who had come with their parents stayed in one room, while the
brothers moved into. another room. They registered separately to get
the ration benefits. Each family would get ration for four people
irrespective of the actual size; therefore, it made more sense to divide
the family into two or three depending on original size. This also
meant that they would get separate camp rooms. Some families were
broken up as people took up job elsewhere. Many shifted to Jammu
camps or rented apartments.
Those who stay in the same camp exchange food and walk into each
other's room without knocking or ringing the bell. One room is treated
244
'like an extension of the other. One of my respondents had a brother
in the opposite room. His nephews would keep dropping in and eat or
watch television. In such cases, while going to weddings or celebrating
certain festivals they would function as one uriit. As they shift to
Dwarka flats even the families would break up again as they won't be
staying nearby. The Kashmiri Pandit families would undergo a further
break up auring the resettlement process.
Thus we see the forced migration has totally broken down the family
structure. Madan too had recorded the joint family structure in detail.
That is no longer in existence due to the haphazard way of migration -
families did not move together. Many did not land up in the same
camp - brothers and sisters got separated and by the time they found
each other they had settled down in their respective camps. Some
took the trouble of changing their camps ·to be with their family
members~ Nevertheless, the kitchens, which Madan refers to as the
chulah, which denoted a family has today got divided. The joint family
was therefore one of the first casualties of forced migration for the
Pandits. The situation is not going to improve even when they move
out of the camps as the families cannot chose the flats at Dwarka, so
they could be, far away from each other. This will mean that even the
present level of interaction will come to a halt.
CUISINE
The cuisine of the Kashmiri Pandit was a reflection of the geographical
and physical space they liv~d in. Chaman Lal Gadoo tracing the
history of the Bandit cuisine writes:
To trace the gaud saraswat Brahmin ancestry, from
Kashmir to goa, one must begin must begin with the
story of the famous seer, Saraswata. When there was a
famine in Northern. India, he continued to recite the
245
Vedic texts by consummg the fish that Goddess
Saraswati had given to him. The Brahmins of later
generations who accepted fish as part of their diet were
often known to have refered to this story to justify their
full fledged status as Brahmins despite their consuming
fish. (200 1: 35)
The Pandit cuisine has undergone the least amount of change as
almost everything is available in Delhi.
One of the respondents said that:
We used to buy nanvahi roti - a type of tandoori roti
available only in Kashmir. We try and get it from there if
somebody goes there. It was eaten for breakfast especially
in cities. In the villages, we used to have makki ki roti or
chawal ki roti. After coming here we have started having
chappati/ parantha . We still cook in our old style. We do
not use garam masala(assortment of various sp1ces
commonly used in Delhi);· dalchini( cinnamon), saunf
(aniseed )powder. Our consumption of meat has decreased
with the advent of Islam. (This could be as an attempt to
distinguish themselves from the Muslims)
The rice grown in Kashmir was quite different from what the Pandits
get in the camp. One of the respondent who was not a native of
Kashmir said that in her initial days as a bride she was asked
whether she can cook rice. She said yes but found that she could not
do so, this was because the Kashmiri rice is thicker , sweeter and
small. The water was drained out from the rice and cooked again.
In Kashmir weddings the menu consists of dum aloo( a potato dish),
two or more varieties of paneer(cottage cheese). The rich Kashmiris
may cook ten varieties of paneer and meat. "In Kashmir we used have
246
meat -sheep meat, here we eat goat meat. The weather was such that
those who did not eat meat used to fall ill often. Many women would
not consume meat." When asked whether they would cut it at home.
The respondent said, "Hare Ram! (oh!lord) Who will cut it at home?
Even the mussalman do not cut it at home. The Muslims may cut
chicken at home in case of emergency."
The Pandits did not eat in the house of the Muslims. While one
respondent said that, the Muslims would not eat in their homes
another said that they would. Food was exchanged only with the rich
and elite Muslims. The food would not qe cooked; instead raw meat
and other such items would be exchanged
The Kashmiri Pandits palat~ has become more varied due to forced
migration. This was mainly as the children would eat something with
their friends and would insist on it being cooked at home. As one
respondent put it:
In Kashmir we used to have 'moong dal'( ·a variety of lentil)
and rajma. However, here we have everything. We did not
even know what is masoor dal( lentil) . We used to have
moong dal on special occasions, like on ashtami. There are
several varities of lentil,· which we had not eaten before.
Even though we get cabbage, palak (spinach), Radish here
the taste is not the same. In Kashmir, the radish used to be
small and round. We do not many varities of saag( leafy
greens) like we used in Kashmir. Since the Muslims
boycotted us, we also boycotted them and stopped taking
meat from them. Once a month in Shukla paksh we do not
have onion, garlic, egg or meat.
The Pandits do not use much of spices and they have maintained this
habit here too. They use mostly oil, water, turmeric and green chilli.
247
They use mustard oil. In Kashmir, they use to buy litres and stock it
but here they buy in smaller quantities. The Pandits from the rural
areas found it difficult to reconcile to the fact that they had to buy
everything from the market. In Kashmir, they used to buy just spices
and salt: Vegetables and rice was grown in the fields.
During the fieldwork l was regularly giVen Kahva( Kashmiri tea) to
drink. When told that the same at the trade fair in Delhi was brewed
in a silver utensil they replied that , "We make Kahva here, though
not in the traditional utensil. Kahva in Kashmir would be brewed in
special brass utensils."
None of the residents had it as they did not carry it from their homes
and was. probably the last thing on their mindS. The Pandits still
make the Kahva as best they can· on the electric stoves. Their meals at ·
home and weddings are much the same. One major addition has been
the inclusion of sweets in the cuisine, which was not a part of their
diet earlier but has been added as their children love it.
LANGUAGE
No discussion on culture can be complete without a mention of
language. Language defines a group and at the same time separates it
from others. Today language is not much of a barrier due to various
means of communication and English having become a global
language of sorts. Nevertheless, language is an important component
of culture.
Before starting a discussion on the Kashmiri language it is imperative
to go into the history of the Kashmiri language. Gadoo (2001: 34)
writes, "The Kashmiri language belongs to the Indo-Aryan family of c.
languages. It has its origin in Vedic, Sanskrit itself. During the
Muslim period in Kashmir, Persian and Urdu words and phrases have
also been assimilated in the language." The written script is Sharada
and not Kashmiri and the religious scripts are written in Sharada.
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A.N .Kaul writes that "mother tongue gives a sense of identity and it is
sad to notice that the parents do not speak to the children in
Kashmiri, instead have switched over to Hindi or English".(200 1: 135)
. But he says, that this phenomenon took place when they were in
Kashmir itself as they wanted the children to speak good English for
getting admission in public schools. The situation now has become
worse with no exposure to Kashmiri at home or outside.
Mother tongue is the strongest link which helps us and
our progeny down the line to communicate intimately
with each other and also to establish instant rapport
with our kinsmen wherever we happen to meet them, in
different parts of India or in foreign lands. It gives us a
sense of belonging to our land of birth, Kashmir and to
our common social and cultural heritage.
The direct fall out of this apathy and willful neglect of
our mother tongue has been the gradual alienation of
most of our children from the mainstream of the
Kashmiri ethos. They not only lack in the basic
grounding of their mother tongue , spoken as well as
written, but they are also drifting away by and by from
all other facets associated with this language- the
music, the literature , the art , t1ie essential rituals and
even so far as their culinary tastes are concerned. It is
indeed painful to find children avoiding get together
because they find the surroundings uncomfortable
owing to their unfamiliarity with their mother tongue.
(Kaul, 2001:136)
The children in the camp spoke very little Kashmiri. The parents, that
is, the older generation spoke in Kashmiri. Most of the residents in
249
the camp spoke Hindi, though with a Kashmiri accent. The children
spoke with an accent like the people in Delhi do. The parents of the
respondents did not speak any Hindi at all. Any conversation was
conducted with the h~lp of a translator.
One respondent said that:
My children do not speak fluent Kashmiri. They
understand when we speak to them and know a few -
sentences. They do not have the time to learn and if they
learn, they may have problems in school. They will face
problems in case we go back to Kashmir. They will not
understand the teachers who speak in Kashmiri. -.The
studies are tougher there, as there is lot of emphasis on
grammar. The childr~n who used to come here were
considered good since they has good grasp over grammar.
Even the teachers would be in awe of the Kashmiri Pandit
students.
The Pandits , said that they spoke Kashmiri differently from the
Muslims. They said that their manner of speaking denoted a lot of
respect to the person being spoken to. Most of them did not
understand or speak Hindi. The residents were not very fluent and
had a distinct accent while speaking. One respondent said that when
they first came they did not know Hindi at all. Many picked up-from
the television programmes they used to watch, especially the religious
programmes.
The children on the other hand could be mistaken for Punjabis due to
the manner of speaking. One parent lamented that the children were
leaming abuses form their playgroup. We can say that apart from the
family, language has also been a major casualty due to forced
migration. The present generation cannot read the sharada script, it
250
means that they cannot read the Holy Scriptures and this would in
turn affect the religious activity and participation of the future
generations. Thus language has been another victim of forced
migration and it is doubtful that the future generations will be '
proficient in their own mother tongue.
DRESS
The Kashmiris have always been identified by their dresses. Almost
everyone has a fi,xed image of the Kashmirs - men in long pherans,
women in silver ornaments and colourful pherans.
Previous research on Kashmir shows that:
Formerly both Hindu and Muslim ladies of the middle class
used to live in purdah. Now the Hindu ladies in Kashmir
proper have completely dropped the use ofpurdah. Some of
their sisters in Jammu, however, still use it. Kashmiri
Muslims ladies of the middle class mostly still live in
purdah, so that lead cloistered lives.
The Kashmiri Panditain(Kashmiri Pandit lady ) wears the
gaudy pheran, the ample Kashmiri gown, hemmed with a
border and hanging in awkward folds. She has, as an off
shoot of hindu reform movements taken to the Indian type
of dress in, order to align herself with the progressive
women of her country. The picturesque pheran is not going
out of use with the Muslim women.
The head dress that the Muslim wear is peculiar. The
kasaba, as it is called, is a turban-like red head dress, held
tight with pins to which is fastened a bonnet of cotton print
or embroidered cloth that covers the pendant tresses. It is
worn by the Muslim women after marriage. Such of the
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Panditain, who still wear the picturesque pheran, continue
the head-dress, taranaga that goes with it. Unlike, the
kasaba, it is white and only a few pins are }lsed to keep it
in place. The pendant bonnet used over it falls to the heels.
Unmarried girls wear skull caps which are sometimes
worked with lace. Peasant girls and women have their hair
spread over the forehead and sides in a large number of
skillfully woven plaits, which are tied. into a knot and
covered by a coarse tassel on the b~ck. Large silver or
metal earrings and necklaces besmear their skim near the
ears. Silver bracelets and glassy bangles make a jingling
sound when she scours the utensils near the riverside or
carries water from there. Home made grass shoes are much
in use. She wears leather shoes, if she can afford them.
(Dhar, 1999: 75)
The Kashmiri women had stopped wearing the pheran long before the
migration. They used to wear sari even at weddings. Even the men
used to wear the pheran epecially in the rural areas. As they joined
the government services, they started western clothes to work. The·
women wore the pheran in winter to ward off the cold. The women still -
wear the 'Deejoor', the sign of a married Kashmiri Pandit woman. It
used to be attached to a longer gold chain. Now they do not wear gold
in fear of theft. As one respondent put it "In Kashmir, if a girl was
alone in the middle of the night Muslim boys would accompany her.
Nobody would look at others money. This is no longer so and has
ended with the migration of the previous generation."
To quote one lady respondent:
We had stopped wearing the pheran long before the
migration. We had started wearing sarees and salwar
kammez. It was during the rule of Aurangzeb that a rule
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was made that the Hindu ladies were not to wear anything
underneath the pheran. Then the educated ladies started
wearing sarees, they did not wear salwars which the
muslims wore. There is no harm in learning good things.
Women still wear the head covering/ cloth during th~
weddings. The ladies used to tie something called a talras
the rich would tie a gold one while the poor would wear one
of thread.
Another respondent added:
The older generation of ladies used to cover their head with
cloth. There were two head coverings- one small and one
big. One was tied after marriage and. one shows that the
girl is ready for marriage. This was not to be taken out even
in the presence of the husband. In case she is without it,
nobody would enter the room. On coming to the camp, they
wore it for some time but then the climate did not allow
them to wear it. (The elderly ladies (age group of 60-70) did
not wear any head dress).
In fact, Madan had recorded way back in 1964 that the pheran was no
longer the preferred dress of the Pandit women. "Symbolising the
gradual emancipation of Pandit womanhood in Srinagar is the almost '
complete change over to the sari from the traditional costume of
pandit women which is still much used in the villages. The sari has
reached the villages also."( 1989: 22)
The Kashmiri women in the camp did not dress in the traditional and
if they had not been wearing the deejor it would have been difficult to
distinguish them from the women of North- India. The dress has not
been a victim of forced migration, the change in the attire had started
253
way back about thirty years. Gradually the. sari replaced the pheran
even for weddings.
Thus we see that the Pandit lifestyle has undergone a vast change due
to forced migration. There has been some element of change in every
aspect - occupation, family, education, dress, cuisine and language.
The only difference being the degree of change in each of these
aspects of the Pandit life. There has been a constant effort through
out this chapter to capture the changes in many ways- through
comparison with Madan's work, existing literature on forced migration
and cultural changes. The reasons for this were:
• To give a picture of life in Kashmir before migration
• Record some of the changes occurring with the passage of time
and exposure to modernization and urbanization
• The respondents tendency to create a picture of a near perfect
community would have to faulty conclusions, Madan's work
helped eliminate misconceptions
• Preservation and changes in culture were better understood and
certain generalizations could be made based on the findings of
this study and ones done previously on similar lines
The concluding chapter which follows will quickly summarize the
changes that have come about, the significance of the changes and
the future of the Kashmiri Pandit community. It will logically tie up all
the previous chapters and give an insight into the how the Pandits
have tackled the situation so far.
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