Mohammad Arfat Wani
Rayees Ahmad Kumar, who was born in the peaceful village of Berigam Qazigund in Kashmir, is one among those few literary voices that do not write with ink but with conscience, infusing passion, sincerity, and responsibility in each word.
A columnist, novelist, book reviewer, and occasional poet in English and Kashmiri, he is of the noble tradition of writers who do not come from profession but from a vocation, understanding writing not as a job but as a holy obligation.
His own life shows dedication, humility, and a passion for learning from the humble Govt Primary School Berigam, to Govt High School Sopat, Govt Boys Higher Secondary School Anantnag, and Govt Degree College Khanabal. From there, he went on to do postgraduate studies in Political Science from IGNOU, did his B.Ed from Rehmat-e-Alam College of Education Anantnag, and is now doing an M.Sc. from IGNOU, and this exemplifies the spirit of lifelong learning.
He developed his passion for newspapers from an early age when as a child he looked forward to his father or grandfather getting one home, reading articles and columns with an avidity as if they were treasures, sowing the seed of a passion that soon blossomed into a devotion towards literature.
His first article was published in Aash, the annual magazine of Govt BHSS Anantnag, followed by regular contributions to Verinag, the annual magazine of Govt Degree College Khanabal, and soon his essays and columns began to get space in local and national dailies, usually responding to social, cultural, and educational problems with clearness and moral seriousness.
A nature lover and a peace seeker, he employs language as tools of consciousness and change, hoping that literature should resonate both with the heart and with the conscience, and among his eminent works, Silent Voices and Kral Koor (Potter’s Daughter) are landmarks of his literary journey, worth not only reading but also being celebrated.
Silent Voices: A brief overview
Released in 2023 by Shrihind Publications, Silent Voices (ISBN 978-93-92759-25-3) is a volume of twenty-four poems that glows like a dim lamp in the shadows of indifference, a unique Kashmiri voice in English literature. Its foreword is prose poetry, reminding readers that poetry is not a mere beautification of language but a healing energy that can reach conscience and evoke compassion.
Poetry is for Kumar the language of isolation, an exchange between soul and Creator, a whisper of feelings too profound to be uttered in everyday language. Influenced by literary titans like Shakespeare, Wordsworth, Keats, Donne, and Shelley, he places himself in their line while staying anchored in Kashmir.
His poetic odyssey had its start in school, when he recited poetry with emotion, finding in poetry both a friend in loneliness and a source of lucidity, perception, and ethical insight. Dedicated to his deceased grandfather Haji Habibullah Kumar, whose love still leads him, the book is greater than an anthology; it is a temple of thanks and remembrance.
In poems such as Chinar and Autumn, Kumar pays tribute to Kashmir’s natural beauty, whereas desperation and predicament exhibit human vulnerability. Spiritual tribute is offered in poems such as Sheikh Hamza Makhdoom (RA) and Mir Syed Ali Hamadani (RA), whereas Barn Swallow and Tiger allow nature to speak for itself, and Mart and Gravedigger reveal greed and tragedy. Humanity Lost laments moral decay, Mother’s Pain resonates perpetual maternal sorrow, and cultural wealth is witnessed in Chilliah-Kalan, Kangri, Pheran, and Kashmir the Paradise. Universally relatable concepts of love, knowledge, and endurance shine in Freedom, Spring, Woman, Teacher, Solacer, Song of Love, and Childhood, while the one on the Covid pandemic reflects tragedy with the healing break given to nature.
Kumar’s recourse to simple English makes complex thoughts reach out, intermingling Kashmiri essence with human universality, making Silent Voices a repository of memory, conscience, hope, and culture, unifying aesthetic pleasure with moral insight.
Kral Koor (Potter’s Daughter): A concise overview
Kral Koor (Potter’s Daughter), published for the first time in 2021 by INK LINKS Publishing House, Pampore, reflects his social conscience. Committed to his parents, late grandfather, and daughter, it tells a tale of gratitude beset by tragedy.
Set in a tiny village outside Anantnag, it tracks the life of the potter, Mushtaq, his wife Jabeena, and their daughter Fozia. The potter’s wheel as an allegory for patience, fate, and the dainty molding of life captures the theme of this film. Fozia, a smart and aspiring girl aspiring to be a doctor or scientist, is the product of her parents’ sacrifices, but whose aspirations are dampened by tradition and societal pressure. Tainted “Kral Koor” because of her family history, she is subject to caste discrimination and patriarchal brutality, especially in the house of her in-laws where barrenness and ardor for a male child are prominent, evidencing the prevalent ignorance on scientific realities on the issue of child sex determination. Fozia’s tragic suicide surprises the reader and stands for millions of silenced women, as her in-laws’ house being burnt and her weeping parents killed heighten the tragedy, yet Kumar’s account is realistic, dialogue true to life, and cultural setting vibrant. The title is reversed from abuse to symbol of dignity; Fozia emerges as a symbol of resistance and social consciousness, as a universal icon of girls battered by poverty and prejudice.
Kral Koor is not just fiction; it is a social document retaining the life of potters, revealing caste-based discrimination, critiquing patriarchy, and forcing readers to debate their own conscience, leaving an indelible mark on society.
Conclusion: A voice of conscience
Silent Voices and Kral Koor combined make Rayees Ahmad Kumar a writer of moral depth, lyrical sensitivity, and social responsibility. His poetry stirs the conscience, his fiction exposes society’s wounds, and his columns evoke cultural and educational awareness.
Situated in Kashmiri soil but universal in appeal, his works prove that literature is not merely for pleasure but for remembrance, justice, and compassion as well. Kumar is a chronicler of his times, a witness to emotion, and a torchbearer of conscience. His own path from a village boy soaking up newspapers to a writer whose words adorn national pages is itself a tale of inspiration. Through his books, he challenges us to remember that voiceless voices need to be heard, untold stories need to be heard, and truth, no matter how painful, needs to be written, stored, and shared.
Silent Voices and Kral Koor are living proof of the literary capacity to provoke empathy, resist injustice, and rejoice in resilience, establishing Rayees Ahmad Kumar as an outstanding figure in modern Kashmiri and Indian literature.
(The author is a passionate writer, social activist, and medical student. He hails from from Kuchmulla Tral and can be reached at [email protected])
