Kuldeep Sumbly (born 3 May 1956), better known by his pen name Agnishekhar,[1] is a Kashmiri Pandit writer and political activist. He is the founder of Panun Kashmir ("Our Kashmir") organization, a group that advocates for the cultural rights of Pandits and a homeland.[2][3] As a poet, he has contributed to the development of a Hindi poetry of exile from a distinctly Kashmiri perspective.[4] He views pre-Islamic culture as a source for contemporary Pandit identity.[5]
Agnishekhar | |
|---|---|
| Born | Kuldeep Sumbly 3 May 1956 |
| Occupations |
|
| Years active | 1990–present |
| Movement | Panun Kashmir |
| Spouse | Kshama Kaul |
| Writing career | |
| Pen name | Agnishekhar |
| Occupation | Author and Poet |
| Language | |
| Subject | Exodus of Kashmiri Hindus |
| Notable works |
|
Works
editAgnishekhar is the author of Kisi Bhi Samay (At Any Moment), a collection of poetry published in 1992. The book is organized into two sections: the 49 poems of "Kram" ("Sequence"), and the ten poems of "Visthapit Kashmir" ("Displaced Kashmir") which differ from "Kram" in being labeled by place of composition (always Jammu) and a date ranging from mid-1990 to early 1991.[6] The poem "Mahavipada" ("Great Trouble"), from the "Displaced Kashmir" section, criticizes the camps into which displaced Pandits were settled.[7]
Agnishekhar also contributed to the screenplay for the "Bollywood-style" movie Sheen, which uses Pandit displacement as the context of a love story.[8]
Athrot is an organization of displaced artists and writers organized its first ever Kashmiri Poetry day on 27 August 2018 and Agnishekar presided over the poetic session.[9]
Mohammed Ayub Betab's poems in original Kashmiri are translated to Hindi by Agni Shekhar.[10]
References
edit- ^ The Princeton Encyclopedia of Poetry and Poetics (Princeton University Press, 2012), p. 768.
- ^ Ananya Jahanara Kabir, Territory of Desire: Representing the Valley of Kashmir (University of Minnesota Press, 2009), p. 160.
- ^ Kabir, Territory of Desire, p. 167.
- ^ The Princeton Encyclopedia of Poetry and Poetics, p. 768.
- ^ Kabir, Territory of Desire, p. 169.
- ^ Kabir, Territory of Desire, p. 162.
- ^ Kabir, Territory of Desire, p. 166–167.
- ^ Kabir, Territory of Desire, p. 170.
- ^ "Athrot organises Kashmiri poetry day for youngsters". Daily Excelsior. 27 October 2018. Retrieved 5 October 2021.
- ^ "agnishekar". lifeandlegends.com. Retrieved 5 October 2021.
External links
edit- "Snow Still Falls," an English translation of a poem by Agnishekhar
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