The Idea of Kashmir in an average Indian’s mind is that of a paradise laid waste by the ill intentions and actions of unscrupulous individuals backed by a foreign power and supported by a section of the local population.
Kashmir Living, by Zishaan Akbar Latif
My account of Kashmir is not conflict driven but irony driven. What I read is not what I almost saw or experienced. What I experienced was far more impactful than the misconstrued and misleading bits of news I got to read or see in the ‘safer’ parts of India. What I experienced hands-on was important to understand the ground realities of a land torn between 2 egoistic countries calling this magnificent stretch of land an “integral” part of ones country without really providing its people the elementary necessities of choice and a voice to express their need for an education, …
Photo Essay: Asia Journey, by Henri Cartier-Bresson
After Paris and Europe, Cartier-Bresson’s second love was Asia. He spent a lot of time across the region after the war, capturing a journey of images across China, India, Kashmir, and Southeast Asia. He was there at the death of Gandhi, and his picture firmed the event’s decisive moment. He had a particular fondness of Indonesia, and married Ratna Mohini, a Javanese dancer.