A historical centre of trade and architecture, downtown or Shehr-e-Khaas in Srinagar city today suffers the traumas of decades old conflict and the tragedies of lives and livelihoods lost as a result of it. The resistance movement of Kashmir which was upheld largely here in the previous decades, today is observed to have shifted momentum to the rural areas of the state. Srinagar's ancient hub of worldly trades, however continues to suffer wounds, visible in the abandonment of its antique wooden structures and the decay of its trade.
The inheritance of work and workshops that are characteristic to downtown has left behind remnants of Kashmir’s culturally hybrid history; the craftsmen, artisans and traders of downtown continue to reproduce age-old workmanship in dimly lit workshops across old city. While the objects of their work are sometimes brightly displayed, such as in the glistening shopfronts of the famous copper dealers; sometimes they are just a sweet smell or a soft hammering sound in downtown’s alleys, leading to hidden workshops where some of the most traditional and nostalgic of Kashmir’s culture are being baked and crafted.
It is the sight of a solitary man sitting in his shop, meditating on the tools at hand, that makes one take A Walk through Old City’s Workshops.
