SCATTERED SOULS: A COLLECTION OF 13 STORIES
- The
Transistor
- The
Gravestone
- The
Ex-militant
- Psychosis
- Theft
- A
Photo with Barack Obama
- Oil
and Roses
- Country-Capital
- Shabaan
Kaak’s Death
- The
House
- Some
small things I couldn’t tell you
- The
Silent Bullet
- The
Woman Who Became Her Own Husband
1. The Transistor
The story exposes the harsh and brutal realities of the
Kashmir conflict. A place where a petty misunderstanding can claim a person’s
life. A villager, Mohammad Yousuf Dar,
becomes the talk of the village as people suspect him a spy. His Delhi based
brother, Abdul Rahmaan Dar, a politician gifts him a transistor but the
transistor draws suspicion and is mistaken for a wireless set that takes his
life. Yousuf though a staunch supporter of freedom movement and justice was
untimely killed by insurgents with the crime of being the brother of the
collaborative mainstream politician.
2. The Gravestone
The central character Mohammad Sultan, a talented carpenter
who was the staunch supporter of the freedom struggle and lost his only son
after the later joined a group of
militants. Sultan had to finally murder his self respect and apply for a
monetary compensation for his martyred son, Mushtaq Ahmad Najar to bring the
medicines for his ailing granddaughter.
3. The Ex-militant
Ghulam Mohiuddeen, an ex-militant who tries to rehabilitate
himself and return to the normal life by driving an auto rickshaw around
Srinagar. The story is in the form of an
interview. He narrates his experiences both at Papa 2 and KotBhalwal. It also
throws light on how the detainees from the rich and affluent families like
Fayaz Shah become successful in evading jail by bringing ‘pashmina shawls’ for
the entire staff.
4. Psychosis
The story is about the Post Traumatic Psychological Disorder
(PTSD) of Sakeena whose husband–Gulam Mohiuddeen, an ex-militant, disappears
mysteriously. She is forced by the police to give one lac rupees and to offer
herself in bed to get her husband’s information. She is eventually gang rapped
by the Indian troops which deteriorates her mental balance. She is then
admitted in the psychiatric disease hospital where she notices the pathetic and
deplorable condition of the other patients affected by the conflict. In such
conditions she sees the only ray of hope in the form of Dr. Imtiyaz, the
consultant at psychiatric hospital who adopts Sakeena’s ten year old daughter,
Insha whose experiences are mentioned in the chapter “Theft”.
5. Theft
The story “Theft” outlines Insha’s (Ghulam Mohiudin’s and
Sakeena’s daughter) struggle to find herself a place in the society. Insha
starts working as salesgirl in a cosmetics shop to earn her living where she
faces humiliation and is accused of stealing. The story demonstrates the
humiliation and helplessness faced by the children of the ex-militants.
6. A Photo with Barack Obama
Bilal “Buil” was the son of Sakeena born of gang rape by the
troops and was called “haramuk”( the illegitimate) by the people. Buil faces discrimination and
humiliation in school. Buil compensates the inferiority complex by becoming the
leading stone pelter which landed him in the police custody. Later in the
Chapter, Buil comes across a poster of Barack Obama and takes him for a savour
of the people of Kashmir. He is obsessed with Obama’s visit and hopes that
Obama could say something about the resolution of the Kashmir issue but to his
utter dismay, Obama mentioned in his speech
everything including Indian leadership, economy, heritage, civilization
in the Indian parliament except Kashmir issue.
7. Oil and Roses
Gul Bhagwan, the central character, a childless gardner who
takes care of flowers in Mughal garden. He brings up his foster son Showkat who
gets a government job but soon gets
killed when the army fires indiscriminately after a tyre bursts. Gul‟s hopes
are shattered. Moreover, deep in heart he detests the American tourists
visiting the gardens who praise only at the beauty of the flowers but are indifferent towards the
Kashmir issue. According to him America assists only those nations which have
ample oil resources. That is why when one of the Americans offers him money for
the roses, Gul says, “No. Not money All I want is a bit of attention, sir.”
8. Country-Capital
“Country Capital” is a satirical story which proves the
ignorance and credulity of rural school children who even do not know the name
of the capital of the place they live in and only know the names of India,
Pakistan and America due to the conflict and also describes the involvement of
the sarpanchs and other collaborators joining hands with army for their petty
personal gains.
9. Shabaan Kaak’s Death
“Shabaan Kaak‟s Death” is about the death of the oldest
person from Hawal, who had been a witness to the political upheavals Kashmir
underwent since India got freedom. He wonders about the future of Kashmir which
was awfully stuck in a deadlock. Also, the story describes how his grandsons
strained every nerve to get their grandfather buried amidst the strict curfew
throughout Kashmir. He had dreamt that his funeral procession would be
accompanied by ten thousand people but ironically only twenty two people
attended his funeral. The story also brings to the lime light that even in case
of death of a person one has to abide by the draconian laws and severe curfews
imposed by the authorities.
10. The House
A story of a beautiful house called Mir Manzil, where Farooq
Ahmad Mir lived with his wife Zareena. The family is portrayed as unsocial and
remains indoor because of their superiority complex but Farooq’s wife, Zareena
is social and modest. The death of Zareena after the army fire indiscriminately
in the compound of the house changes Farooq’s life. This catastrophe brings a
positive change in Farooq who seems to be a changed character towards the end
of the chapter. To end his loneliness Farooq offered the rooms of the house to
his relatives who were in need of shelter which gave him a sense of belonging.
11. Some small things I couldn’t tell you
The story is in the form of a letter written by an ailing
father (who suffers from cancer) to his son advising him to relish every moment
of his life. In the letter he also confesses him why he broke the toys gifted
to the boy by his maternal DSP uncle. This was a strategy to protect the boy
from “the shadows of evil love”. The father also advised his son to look after
the ornamental garden he had set up on the one side of the stream in spite of
the dispute.
12. The Silent Bullet
A story of a teacher and a philosopher, Mohammad Ameen. It
has been one year since a silent bullet pierced his spine. It was in 2012 when
Army in Natiopra after kidnapping two young boys fired aerial shots to disperse
the huge crowd which got assembled there and shockingly a silent bullet pierced
and sank into the back of the teacher touching his spine. Since then he is bed
ridden and occasionally dreaming about the heaven and contrasting between
heaven and hell. The story shows the vulnerable condition of innocent people in
conflict zone.
13. The Woman Who Became Her Own Husband
It is an account of sufferings and trauma of an ideal loving
couple Ayesha and Tariq. The happy life of Ayesha is transformed into a vale of
tears and mental trauma when her husband Tariq gets ruthlessly killed in the
Army firing on Residency Road, Srinagar.
Ayesha finds herself in an absolute traumatic shock and gradually suffers from
the acute psychological disorder. She
starts copying her husband’s activities and thus becomes her own husband.
The book is a series of interconnected stories and can be
read as a novel. The book unveils the realistic picture of Kashmiri People. All
the characters are from every walk of life, a school boy, a home maker, a
teacher, a doctor, an innocent orchard owner, a former militant etc. They face
the consequences of the Kashmir conflict. Major themes of the stories
are: Oppression by armed forces (Shabaan Kaak’s death), sexual violence
(Psychosis), Custodial disappearances (Psychosis), torture (A Photo with Barack
Obama), Killings (Oil and Roses, The Man Who Became her Own Husband, The
Gravestone) and loot of natural resources (Country-capital).
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
• Shahnaz Bushir is born and brought up in Indian-administered Kashmir.
• He teaches journalism at the Central University of Kashmir.
• Won the Muse India Young Writer Award 2015 for his debut novel The Half Mother
• Won The Citizen's "Talent of the Year Award 2017.
• Scattered Souls his second book is a collection of thirteen short stories set in 1990’s.
(Note: Content taken from web sources.)