Pulwama's Pride

A young woman in Kashmir turns personal pain into power, offering free lessons and quiet hope to children in a Pulwama village.

- Gowher Bhat

In a modest home tucked into the village of Chewakalan in South Kashmir’s Pulwama district, a soft-spoken young woman begins her day with a chalkboard, a prayer, and a purpose.

Soliha Jan, 27, is not a typical teacher. She doesn’t draw a salary or work in a school building. Her classroom is wherever her students gather. Under tin roofs, in shared rooms, or in open yards. She teaches English, science, and math to children from poor families, all without charging a rupee.

Her journey to this point was not easy. For most of her teens and early twenties, Soliha battled severe depression. She describes those years as isolating, confusing, and silent. “It felt like I didn’t belong anywhere,” she says.

Mental health care remains a taboo in much of rural Kashmir. When Soliha finally sought help, she had to fight the stigma on her own. She leaned on books, prayer, and self-discipline to cope. She eventually earned a Master’s degree in English and completed her B.Ed., but she says the real test came after.

“I wanted to do something that mattered,” she says. “Something that felt real.”