Kashmir’s Photography Club

Several talented young people have come together in Kashmir to form a Photography club. Their work is amazing, and takes the viewer away from the violence to aspects of Kashmir that are getting lost even as they exist. THE CITIZEN contacted one of the photographers SHUJA AALUM behind this initiative who hesitantly agreed to part with a few photographs for us. This is a first sampling to remind readers of the Kashmir that is, and what talented photographers can do with their lens:

Carpet Weaving: The origin of hand knotted carpets locally known as "Kal baffi" dates back to 15th century. It is believed that Sultan Zain-ul-Abidin(Badshah) brought carpet weavers from Persia and central Asia in to Kashmir to train the local inhabitants.

Weaved both in wool & silk yarn have attained such excellence that they rank amongst the finest in the world. Photograph by Shuja Aalum