The Diary of Gull Mohammad

Book excerpt: This diary of a young Muslim Kashmiri boy is not one of those usual diaries that young boys write,. It carries none of the supposed ‘fun’ details that teenagers are supposedly indulging in. After all, this Kashmiri boy, Gull Mohammad is living in no ordinary circumstances. He is living in challenging circumstances, in a conflict zone!. He is a Muslim Kashmiri boy who is shifted from his home in Srinagar’s down town, to a madrasa in New Delhi. Mind you, shifted by his own parents in the hope that he will be able to survive and study in a stress-free scenario, far away from the curfews and crackdowns that disrupt life in the Kashmir Valley. But that doesn’t happen. He faces disruptions, disturbances, discriminations, and disparities along the communal strain.He is more than often taunted along the ‘Kashmiri Muslim’ strain. He writes details of the painful taunts and situations, as he is shifted from one locale to the next, finally finding safe refuge in a Calicut situated ‘home’ for children from all communities. Until another destined turn intrudes, leaving him devastated.