SRINAGAR: A quiet but deeply meaningful tribute to the late journalist Mudasir Ali unfolded at Life School in Charari Sharief on Tuesday, where reporters and writers from leading national and international outlets held a day-long media workshop with students. The event marked the first anniversary of the Mudasir Ali Podcast Studio, an audio-visual lab established at the school in 2023 to honour Ali’s commitment to rigorous, ethical journalism.
Mudasir Ali, a resident of Charari Sharief and a senior editor at Greater Kashmir until his death on November 20, 2020, wrote extensively on politics, conflict, and the environment for publications such as The Wire, Foreign Policy, and The New Humanitarian. The studio, dedicated to preserving his journalistic values, trains a select group of students in reporting basics, media ethics, equipment handling, and the responsibilities that accompany the craft of storytelling.
Life School chairman and JK Private School Association chief Baba Nazrul Islam said the aim of creating the studio was to ensure that society continues to produce journalists who embody objectivity and courage. He recalled Mudasir as “an exceptionally kind human being and a rigorous journalist who reported without fear or favour”. He added that while the void left by his passing could never be filled, the school would strive to keep his memory alive by nurturing responsible young voices.
Akash Dutt, a Teach To Elicit fellow who trained the first cohort over the past year, told students that the media functions as the “immune system” of a society, identifying bias and propaganda to keep communities informed. His goal, he said, was not merely to teach camera handling but to instil the ability to hold narratives accountable.
During the workshop, students engaged in informal, one-on-one interactions and question-answer sessions with journalists, including The Telegraph’s Muzaffar Raina, former CNN-IBN Jammu and Kashmir bureau chief Mufti Islah, The Times of India’s Naseer A Ganai, Greater Kashmir’s health editor Zehru Nissa, senior editor Nazir A Ganai, writer and critic Majid Maqbool, and author Zahid Rafiq.
A short felicitation ceremony, chaired by Life School principal Gulafrose closed the event. Mudasir’s brother, Jehangir Ali of The Wire, thanked the participating journalists for sharing their time and experience with the students, calling the workshop a meaningful way to carry forward Mudasir’s legacy of truth, empathy, and public-spirited reporting.
