Asmat Jan offers a concise and informative overview of the Meeras Mahal Museum in Sopore, Kashmir’s oldest apple town.
The Meeras Mahal (The House of Heritage) Museum in Sopore has revealed over 7000 artefacts following years of meticulous curation and recent renovations. These items offer insights into Kashmir’s disappearing rural way of life until the late twentieth century. Credit goes to Atiqa Bano (1940-October 4, 2017), an educationist, and cultural preservationist, who conceived this private museum, aimed at shedding light on aspects of everyday Kashmiri heritage that are gradually vanishing. It is the first of its kind in North India.
Atiqa ‘s dedication in preserving Kashmir’s customs, tools for rituals, and traditional industries laid the foundation for this remarkable collection. During her tenure at the Department of Education, she championed the region’s rich heritage. An official at the museum, who has been associated it for a long time said the initiative started with a Kashmiri fire-pot (Kondal), which was kept in a small room. The additions kept growing as people, mostly residents, came to donate things with an aim to preserve them.
“Atiqa Bano aimed to safeguard our cultural heritage,” Imtiyaz Ahmad, the museum’s curator, said. He noted that she initiated the collection process in the early twenty-first century, which continued for nearly a decade and remains ongoing, with a call for public contributions to enhance the exhibits. Even post-retirement, Bano persistently collected once common but now disappearing items such as handwritten copies of Qur’ans, Persian texts, historical coins, and artefacts associated with Pashmina weaving and the traditional Kashmiri pheran.
Diverse Delights
The collections at the museum include a wide array of items such as terracotta, woodwork, wicker-ware, glassware, stone instruments, textiles, manuscripts, costumes, jewellery, utensils, and musical instruments. Visitors can observe the evolution of rural practices, agricultural tools, customs, instruments required for rituals, minor arts, and traditional industries. “The artefacts vividly depict the rural culture, lifestyle, and living traditions of Kashmir,” Beg said. “It creates an environment for people to connect with their past.” In the terracotta section, vessels like matths for storage, lopun for grains, daan (clay stoves), toer (serving bowls), and chai pateil (tea pans) offer insight into once essential daily objects.
Undaunted by obstacles, Atiqa Bano remained determined, founding the Meeras Mahal Trust in 2009 to formalise her vision. Following her passing in 2017, the trust partnered with INTACH and Span Foundation to refurbish and revitalise the museum. “Atiqa Bano spent 40 to 50 years collecting objects that depict Kashmir’s rural traditions,” reiterated Beg. “Its cultural significance lies in its role as an educational resource.”
The renovation project unfolded in two phases, with Phase I focusing on structural enhancements, earthquake resilience, expanded exhibition spaces, accessibility improvements, and electrification upgrades. “We bolstered earthquake resilience by strategically inserting structural steel at critical points,” explained Beg. “We also introduced ramps and fire escapes to enhance accessibility, drawing inspiration from Kashmir’s taq-based architecture.”
Preserving Legacy
The museum’s diverse sections offer visitors an immersive journey through the multifaceted culture of Kashmir, providing insight into the vibrant tapestry of its people. In the woodwork section, intricate chairs, woven mats, and wicker storage baskets highlight the valley’s craftsmanship. The jewellery collection displays mastery in metalwork, while stone artefacts unveil ancient tools and implements. Textile displays reveal the weaving techniques behind revered Pashmina shawls and costumes.
“Through our museum artefacts, we aim to offer the world a nuanced understanding and appreciation of Kashmir, unravelling its diverse cultural fabric,” remarked Ahmad. The stone hand mills and querns, along with the wooden lattice screens, intricately carved columns, and window frames, exemplify the advanced agricultural tools and local construction techniques that emerged in Kashmir.
“We have initiated the journey, anticipating it to evolve into a central hub for heritage enthusiasts and a learning centre categorising existing collections,” said Eifat Qadeer, a trustee of the Museum.
Magnificent Attraction
Meeras Mahal’s authentic portrayal of traditions makes it a significant attraction for visitors seeking an immersive cultural experience. “When I entered and saw all these things, I remembered my grandmother’s folk tales; now I am seeing those things in reality,” said a native resident, Shabnam. “Here, I saw thousands of things used in earlier times by our ancestors.”
Additional Deputy Commissioner Sopore, Shabir Ahmad Raina, expressed pride in having such a museum, highlighting its potential to attract tourists nationally and internationally. The town known for its apple and prosperity has now the museum emerging as a go-to place for a section of visitors who wish to peep into the past of the motherland. School and college students, visitors, and various community members frequent the museum for its substantial educational worth. The artefacts hold immense cultural and heritage significance, offering a glimpse into the lifestyle and customs of a bygone era in Kashmir.
Most of the museum’s collection hails from the late nineteenth or early twentieth centuries, yet among them are prized ancient and medieval relics, notably stone sculptures and coins. Similarly, the manuscript wing harbours a diverse array of primary and secondary literature spanning poetry, history, literature, and religion, boasting hand-written manuscripts dating back to the 18th century. Museums transcend mere repositories of historical artefacts.
In the face of spatial constraints, Bano’s family, INTACH, and Span Foundation maintain their dedication to preserving her legacy. The museum’s soft opening signifies a major step in safeguarding Kashmir’s cultural heritage, realising Bano’s longstanding aspiration.
“Meeras Mahal is fundamentally an ethnographic museum setting itself apart from the conventional museum,” remarked broadcaster Rafiq Masoodi, former Secretary of Jammu and Kashmir’s Academy of Art, Culture, and Languages. “Atiqa Bano, who envisioned this moment half a century ago, is now witnessing its fruition.” As visitors explore the museum’s corridors, they embark on a voyage through Kashmir’s history, connecting with Atiqa Bano’s enduring spirit and the region’s diverse cultural fabric. “The museum shall remain an institution that will prevent forgetting the name of its founder.”
During peak tourism seasons, Meeras Mahal has emerged as a must-see destination for aficionados of heritage, attracting both locals and international visitors. A visiting student marvelled, saying: “We can envision how simplistic that era was, how they explored and devised things independently by observing these artefacts. Here, we encounter jute-based garments for cold protection, cloth-made slippers, rat traps, handcuffs, and notably, handloom machines for garment production.”
Celebrating Culture
Visiting students were impressed by the extensive display of medieval Kashmiri innovation and self-sufficiency in the museum’s array of handmade artefacts. “We can observe traditional earthen pots and utensils being replaced by modern versions,” remarked Nakul Grover, one of the student visitors. “Meeras Mahal effectively preserves their history – from jute clothing for cold weather to handmade slippers, rat traps, handcuffs, and notably, handloom machines once used for weaving fabrics.”
A diverse coalition including writers, professors, NGOs, students, and educators has rallied around the goal of promoting Kashmir’s rich heritage through Meeras Mahal. The museum aims to serve as a cornerstone for safeguarding Kashmir’s distinct traditional cultural elements, many of which are fading as lifestyles evolve and modern influences grow.
As an ethnographic institution distinct from conventional museums, Meeras Mahal immerses visitors in environments that offer tangible connections to Kashmir’s rural heritage across different historical periods through meticulously curated exhibits. While the collections were primarily assembled through the efforts of Atiqa Bano, the museum continues to seek public contributions of heritage items to enhance its displays, portraying various facets of Kashmiri life through the ages.
The museum maintains a direct link with the local community, predominantly through the generous contributions of artefacts from its members. Communities from Sopore, Srinagar, and other regions of North Kashmir have enthusiastically engaged in preparing exhibits, organizing events, fundraising, and cataloguing items for the museum. Many individuals involved in its upkeep and promotion do so voluntarily, finding fulfilment in the dissemination of Kashmiri culture and cherished traditions to a wider audience.
