Hospitality in Hard Times

After the Pahalgam attack, Kashmiris fed, sheltered, and transported stranded tourists, even as the mainland answered with threats and violence.

- Mahoor Haya Shah

Being Kashmiri is carrying your heart like contraband — everywhere inspected, everywhere distrusted.

After the attack in Pahalgam, where blood spilled and screams tore through the meadow, the old narrative was revived. Every Kashmiri was blamed again. But here's what most headlines missed: even in grief, we opened our homes.

Hotels flung open their doors. Restaurants cooked extra meals. Villagers shared their meager supplies with stranded tourists. Drivers offered free rides to the airport, refusing money. Across Pahalgam and beyond, kindness became instinct, not strategy.

In Kashmir, even amid heartbreak, hospitality runs deeper than fear.