Sara shows the resilience of proud Kashmiri culture. There is beauty in her spirit.
A woman called Sara
(Even an ordinary person can teach important lessons of the life, Syed Sibghat Geelani, encounters one such woman, who taught her some basic things.)
Clad in a traditional Kashmiri dress, with kanwajis (long earrings) in ears, Kasab on head and with kangri protruding underneath her tattered Pheran, she presents a glum picture. Sitting on the busy Amira Kadal Bridge with a basketful of fishes, she aspires to sell them all by her selling abilities. Meet Sara, the fisherwoman.
The weather is vacillating and I can see she is wearing an old pair of torn slippers. Her feet are swollen, she doesn’t seem to bother. Even though she appears to be very strong and convinced but her eyes are narrating a different tale; a saga of uncertainties, miseries and poverty. I am observing her quite a while now and she thinks I have to buy fish from her. Her eyes lighten up when I ask her; why is she so sad? Within a span of few moments, she reveals her life, responsibilities, ordeals and struggle.
Every morning the suns rays fall upon the shimmering blue waters of Dal making the waves ripple beneath the doonga Sara lives in. It is the time when Sara leaves for work along with other fisherwomen. Her husband Altaf has already collected the days catch and now Sara has to sell them. Her husband is a fisherman and Sara has no option but to sell the fish to make their ends meet.
Her day is the beginning of a long and tiring work and she is not sure whether she will be able to sell the whole stock or not. Sara has been married for two years now and is the proud mother of a seven-month-old baby. Before venturing out to sell fish she keeps her child with her mother in another part of the lake. Then, begins her usual struggle for the day. Her days are hard and depressing. She dreams of a miracle to take her away from this sordid life. Everyday her destination ends at Amira Kadal Bridge that is where she gets a due sale. If she cannot sell the fish on the bridge then she goes door to door to sell fish. During the winter season, it gets even worse. At times it becomes difficult for her to sit on the bridge in cold with damp feet. However with all the hardships and ordeal in day- to-day life; at the end of the day she is a satisfied lady as her husband and son get their stomachs filled. It gives her pride.
I leave but her resilience and confidence gives me courage. Why is it that we get disheartened when we don’t get what we aim? This simple women taught me what exactly struggle is and at the end how striving for success yields results. I need to learn that there are no easy and readymade things for success, success has to be achieved.