BUDGAM: Haleem Qadri, a 43 year old woman from central Kashmir’s Budgam district who has never gone to school, never held a pen but has come up with her fine collection of Kashmiri poetry.
Haleema’s actual name is Haleema Teli but she assumes ‘Qadri’ to depict her commitment towards Sufism. Hailing from Sugin village in Khag tehsil of Budgam district, she is married at early age to artisan namely Ghulam Ahmad Teli in Churamujra village.
Despite barriers of being illiterate, she attempts to compile her poems in her heart and mind. Haleema latter approaches Kashmiri writers to pen down her poetry. Her Book named after the Prophet has poems about diverse subjects, though mostly mystic in nature.
Haleema says that she visits several offices to get help for publishing her collection of poetry but all efforts proves in vain. Later she decided to sell her domestic animals and some trees to publish her work in 2014. She recalls her decision of selling personnel assets to publish her poetry pushes her family into economic crises.
Haleema believes that she is not the only one who has done it without knowing how to read and write. “Kashmir has produced a number of such poets but their poetry vanished in thin air after their death. This motivated me to publish my work,” she added.
She said that there is major contribution of such poets in keeping alive Kashmiri language and poetry. “There must be policies to preserve their creative work which could help them reach a wider audience,” she suggests.
Heleema was born in poverty, grew up illiterate and is living a married life without a child; the pain is conspicuous in her poetry. “Poetry is spontaneous expression of yearnings and emotions coming out in the shape of couplets”, she said.
Her art is echoing her struggle, feelings and emotions takes shaping into poetry. Her poems give the glimpse of ordinary Kashmiri women’s beliefs and occupations by using innovative expressions and common Kashmiri words such as einder, wariv, maluin, etc.
Her poetry also carries a message of secularism as she talks about Bagwan and Rahman in her poetry. Her special admiration for saints depicts the tradition of Kashmiri women which she is carrying forward. (Inputs Kashmir Ink)
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