Shahid Jeelani
In the quiet village of Dardpora Khaitangan in Baramulla, a young man named Asif Iqbal Bhat has taken it upon himself to protect something more fragile than stone and soil his mother tongue.
On social media, people know him as Keashur Parun, the boy who refuses to let Kashmiri slip into silence. His mission is simple, yet powerful: to remind people that language is not just about words, but about who we are.
The Kashmiri language, once woven deeply into daily life, now stands at a dangerous edge. With modernization and the growing dominance of other languages, many young people are drifting away from speaking Kashmiri, often without realizing what is being lost.
“We often forget that our mother tongue is not just a means of communication; it’s our identity, our history, and our culture,” Asif says softly, his words carrying the weight of an entire generation’s fading connection.
Asif’s inspiration comes from the great voices of Kashmiri literature and spirituality Sheikh-ul-Alam, Lal Ded, Wahab Khar, Rasul Mir, and many more. Their poetry and wisdom remind him that Kashmiri is not just a language; it’s a way of living, feeling, and belonging.
Through his Instagram account, Asif breathes life back into everyday Kashmiri. He shares old riddles, forgotten proverbs, and historical nuggets small pieces of culture that, together, form a bridge between the past and the present. His posts may be short, but they carry a powerful message: speak Kashmiri, keep it alive.
In his own way, Asif has become a guardian of memory, standing against the tide of forgetting. And perhaps, through his words, a whole generation might rediscover the beauty of speaking from the heart in Kashmiri.
